What are Endocrine Disrupting Chemicals (EDCs)?
Man-made chemicals have become part of everyday life. It is clear that some of these chemical pollutants can affect the endocrine (hormonal) system, and certain of these endocrine disruptors may also interfere with the developmental processes of humans and wildlife species.
An Endocrine disruptor is an exogenous substance or mixture that alters function(s) of the endocrine system and consequently causes adverse health effects in an intact organism, or its progeny, or (sub) populations. (IPCS, 2002)
A potential endocrine disruptor is an exogenous substance or mixture that possesses properties that might be expected to lead to endocrine disruption in an intact organism, or its progeny, or (sub) populations. (IPCS, 2002)
Update of the EDCs State of the Science Report
At its resumed fifth session, the United Nations Environment Assembly (UNEA) through Resolution 5/7 requested the Executive Director of UNEP to, inter alia, subject to the availability of resources, and in cooperation with the World Health Organization (WHO), update the 2012 Report on State of the Science of Endocrine Disrupting Chemicals. Similarly, at its 76th session, the World Health Assembly (WHA) adopted resolution WHA76.17 requesting the Director-General to work jointly with UNEP to update the report.
In response to these requests, UNEP and WHO are collaborating to develop the updated State of the Science of Endocrine Disrupters report.
Amongst others, a UNEP & WHO Expert Group on updating the State of the Science Report on Endocrine Disrupting Chemicals (EDCs) has been established to guide and support the work (list of experts). The group’s anticipated main tasks will be:
- to provide inputs on the overall approach, including the scope, outline and methodology of the new report (noting that the report will be drafted by contractor(s) and selected authors),
- to provide guidance on relevant scientific data to be collected, as well as its quality and suitability,
- to review the draft versions of the new report.
This work is foreseen to take place between the third quarter of 2024 and the last quarter of 2025 in order for the new report to be made available to the seventh session of UNEA in December 2025.
Background
Following international recommendations in 1997 by the Intergovernmental Forum on Chemical Safety and the Environment Leaders of the Eight regarding the issue of endocrine disrupting chemicals (EDCs), World Health Organization (WHO), through the International Programme on Chemical Safety (IPCS), a joint programme of WHO, United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) and the International Labour Organization (ILO), developed in 2002 a report entitled Global Assessment of the State-of-the-Science of Endocrine Disruptors. The report concluded that understanding of the effects of EDCs on wildlife and humans was incomplete and that strengthened international collaborative efforts in a number of areas were of high priority.
The Strategic Approach to International Chemicals Management (SAICM) was established by the International Conference on Chemicals Management (ICCM) in 2006, with the overall objective to achieve the sound management of chemicals throughout their life cycle so that, by 2020, chemicals are used and produced in ways that minimize significant adverse effects on human health and the environment.
SAICM recognized that risk reduction measures need to be improved to prevent the adverse effects of chemicals on the health of children, pregnant women, fertile populations, the elderly, the poor, workers and other vulnerable groups and susceptible environments. It states that one measure to safeguard the health of women and children is the minimization of chemical exposures before conception and through gestation, infancy, childhood and adolescence.
SAICM also specified that groups of chemicals that might be prioritized for assessment and related studies, such as for the development and use of safe and effective alternatives, include chemicals that adversely affect, inter alia, the reproductive, endocrine, immune or nervous systems. A resolution to include EDCs as an emerging issue under SAICM was adopted in 2012 by the International Conference on Chemicals management at its third session (ICCM3). The Conference considered that information dissemination and awareness-raising on endocrine-disrupting chemicals were particularly relevant and that improving the availability of and access to information on such chemicals was a priority.
In 2013, UNEP and WHO released the Summary for Decision-Makers, together with the main document, 2012 Report on the State of the Science of Endocrine Disrupting Chemicals, presenting information and key concerns for policy-makers on endocrine disruptors as part of the ongoing collaboration between WHO and UNEP to address concerns about the potential adverse health effects of chemicals on humans and wildlife. The report identifies concerns, including evidence in humans, laboratory animals, and wildlife that exposure to endocrine-disrupting chemicals can result in adverse effects and highlighted that an important focus should be on reducing exposure.
In 2015, ICCM4 invited UNEP and WHO to address the needs identified by developing countries and countries with economies in transition by generating and disseminating information on endocrine-disrupting chemicals.
In response to its commitment to the ICCM Resolutions on EDCs, in 2016, UNEP commissioned the International Panel on Chemical Pollution (IPCP) to develop a set of Three Overview Reports on EDCs in close collaboration with the UNEP Advisory Group on EDCs. The reports focus on a review of existing initiatives to identify EDCs and on existing scientific knowledge of the life cycles, environmental exposure, effects, legislation, and measures and gaps regarding EDCs and potential EDCs (including information from developing and transition countries).
Resources
Reports
Global assessment on the state of the science of endocrine disruptors - International Programme on Chemical Safety, 2002
State of the Science of Endocrine Disrupting Chemicals – UNEP and WHO, 2012
State of the science of Endocrine disrupting chemicals - Summary for decision-makers - UNEP and WHO, 2012 (also available in Chinese, French and Spanish)
Overview Report I: Worldwide initiatives to identify endocrine disrupting chemicals (EDCs) and potential EDCs - UNEP, 2017
Chemical Factsheets as of July 2017
Factsheets - UNEP, 2022
Endocrine disrupting chemicals
Bisphenol A
Phthalates
Infographics and Brochure
Things we buy - Thing we grow - Places we work and live - Things we make - UNEP, 2017
EDCs - Endocrine Disrupting Chemicals - UNEP, 2017
Video
ENDOCRINE DISRUPTING CHEMICALS (EDCs) - KEY CONCERNS - ADVISORY GROUP
