Use the resources on this page to help you:
- Talk to your patients
- Contact local experts
- Learn more from professional organizations
- Find additional resources
Tools to Talk to Your Patients
Reproductive healthcare providers are uniquely positioned to help prevent exposures to environmental chemicals. Preconception and prenatal visits provide a key time to talk about environmental exposures with patients. Use these evidence-based resources to start the conversation.
Local Experts
- Northwest Pediatric Environmental Health Specialty Unit
Clinical environmental health experts from the University of Washington Schools of Medicine and Public Health. This group consults with health care providers on prevention, diagnosis, management and treatment of environmentally related health effects in patients. They also develop educational materials and training for clinicians on environmental health topics.
Professional Organizations Highlight Reproductive and Developmental Impacts
- American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG) Committee Opinion, Exposure to Toxic Environmental Agents (2013)
Reviews scientific evidence that preconception and prenatal exposure to toxic environmental agents impairs reproductive health across the life-course. - International Federation of Gynecology and Obstetrics (FIGO) Opinion on Reproductive Health Impacts of Exposure to Toxic Environmental Chemicals (2015) (PDF)
Reviews evidence linking prenatal exposure to toxic chemicals to poor reproductive and developmental health outcomes like low birth weight, congenital malformations, impaired cognitive and neurodevelopment, and cancer. - The Endocrine Society's Statement on Endocrine-Disrupting Chemicals (2015)
Reviews endocrine-disrupting chemicals and scientific evidence showing how they contribute to obesity, diabetes, cardiovascular disease, impaired reproduction, hormone-sensitive cancers, prostate and thyroid abnormalities, and impairments in neurodevelopment. - Environmental Impacts on Reproductive Health, Association of Reproductive Health Professionals (2010) (PDF)
Includes case studies and evidence-based messages for counseling patients on pesticides, methyl mercury, chemical exposures in the workplace, bisphenol A and other chemicals in plastic.
Additional Resources
- Children's Health Protection Advisory Committee (CHPAC), Preparing for the Nine Months that Last a Lifetime (2013) (PDF)
Provides information for pregnant women and new moms about things they can do to create a healthy environment for their baby. This resource is provided as an appendix to a letter from CHPAC to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency outlining recommendations to provide individuals, families and communities with information about exposures to environmental chemicals. - Program on Reproductive Health and the Environment, University of California, San Francisco
Provides resources, training and education opportunities for providers on environmental chemicals of concern and talking with patients. - Toxic Matters, resources to help your family reduce their environmental exposures
Suggests practical recommendations from the University of California, San Francisco about how to avoid exposure to common substances that may impact reproductive health.
Washington State Department of Health
- Environmental Chemicals in Children
Summarizes emerging evidence that environmental chemicals may contribute to a number of childhood diseases and conditions. - Protect Kids From Toxics, brochure
Provides information on how to protect children from toxic chemicals in homes, foods and consumer products. Topics include how to keep toxics out of your environment, your home, your yard, your body and your child's body. Available in English, Spanish, Russian and Vietnamese. - Healthy Home: Keep you and your family safe and healthy in your home, brochure (PDF)
Covers indoor air quality, lead hazards, product safety, unintentional injuries, asthma, allergens, and irritants. Available in English (PDF), Spanish (PDF), Russian and Vietnamese.