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Abstract
The present review is to evaluate the current state of knowledge in regard to health effects of endocrine disrupting chemicals (EDCs) in humans, with a special reference to recently published research. The primary target audi- ence aside from scientists will be policymakers, public health professionals, and health practitioners who need an up-to-date broad understanding of the issue in the form of a concise compilation of peer-reviewed literature. The main goal serves to synthesize recent research findings regarding the most important toxicological mechanisms associated with EDCs and recent advancements in understanding their health effects. A major emphasis is placed on research that has been published in peer-reviewed journals over the past years, with less attention being given to systematic reviews. Infor- mation found in the literature bears a description of current knowledge of the human health effects of EDCs, focusing on recent scientific publications. Greater familiarity with the complexities of EDC exposure routes, mech- anisms, and the large variety of chemicals that have endocrine-disrupting properties is also aimed. By detailing the state of research, it is hoped that the review may help clarify the complexities for regulatory authorities, enabling for more accurate decision-making with regards to management of EDCs. Additionally, this contribution is intended to advance the cur- rent public health and regulatory debate about EDCs, by highlighting the challenges faced in regulation and proposing potential directions for their effective management.
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Copyright (c) 2025 Mona M. Youssef, Aya M. Helal, Yasser I. Khedr (Author)

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
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References
- Bergman A, Heindel JJ, Jobling S, Kidd KA, Zoeller T, editors. State of the Science of En- docrine Disrupting Chemicals—2012. Geneva: WHO/UNEP; 2013.
- Gore AC, Chappell VA, Fenton SE, Flaws JA, Nadal A, Prins GS, et al. EDC-2: The En- docrine Society’s Second Scientific Statement on Endocrine-Disrupting Chemicals. Endocrine Re- views. 2015;36(6):E1-E150. doi:10.1210/er.2015-1010.
- Diamanti-Kandarakis E, Bourguignon JP, Giu- dice LC, Hauser R, Prins GS, Soto AM, et al. Endocrine-disrupting chemicals: an Endocrine Society scientific statement. Endocrine Reviews. 2009;30(4):293-342.doi:10.1210/er.2009-0002.
- Kabir ER, Rahman MS, Rahman I. A re- view on endocrine disruptors and their possi- ble impacts on human health. Environmental Toxicology and Pharmacology. 2015;40(1):241-58. doi:10.1016/j.etap.2015.06.009.
- Mnif W, Hassine AIH, Bouaziz A, Bartegi A, Thomas O, Roig B. Effect of endocrine disrup- tor pesticides: A review. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health. 2011;8(6):2265-303. doi:10.3390/ijerph8062265.
- Frye C, Bo E, Calamandrei G, Calza L, Dessì- Fulgheri F, Fernández M, et al. Endocrine dis- rupters: a review of some sources, effects, and mechanisms of actions on behaviour and neu- roendocrine systems. Journal of Neuroendocrinol- ogy. 2012;24(1):144-59. doi:10.1111/j.1365-2826.2011.02229.x.
- Chen F, Zhou L, Bai Y, Zhou R, Chen L. The effects of endocrine-disrupting chemicals on thy- roid function and thyroid hormones. Endocrine. 2021;74(1):1-15. doi:10.1007/s12020-021-02714-1.
- Kelly M, Connolly L, Dean M. Pub- lic awareness and risk perceptions of en- docrine disrupting chemicals: a qualitative study. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health. 2020;17(21):7778. doi:10.3390/ijerph17217778.
- Lee DH, Porta M, Jacobs DR, Vanden- berg LN. Exposure to endocrine-disrupting chemicals and cardiometabolic mortal- ity risk: A systematic review and meta- analysis of observational studies. Science of the Total Environment. 2022;817:152504. doi:10.1016/j.scitotenv.2021.152504.
- Fuhrman VF, Tal A, Arnon S. Why endocrine disrupting chemicals (EDCs) challenge traditional risk assessment and how to respond. Jour- nal of Hazardous Materials. 2015;286:589-611. doi:10.1016/j.jhazmat.2014.12.012.
- Zoeller RT, Brown TR, Doan LL, Gore AC, Skakkebaek NE, Soto AM, et al. Endocrine- disrupting chemicals and public health protec- tion: A statement of principles from The En- docrine Society. Endocrinology. 2012;153(9):4097110.doi:10.1210/en.2012-1422.
- Vandenberg LN, Colborn T, Hayes TB, Heindel JJ, Jacobs DRJ, Lee DH, et al. Hormones and endocrine-disrupting chemicals: Low-dose effects and nonmonotonic dose responses. Endocrine Re- views. 2012;33(3):378-455. doi:10.1210/er.2011-1050.
- Kortenkamp A, Martin O, Evans R, Orton F, McKinlay R, Rosivatz E, et al. Re- sponse to a critique of the European Com- mission Document, “State of the Art Assess- ment of Endocrine Disrupters” by Rhomberg and colleagues–letter to the editor. Crit- ical Reviews in Toxicology. 2012;42(9):787-9. doi:10.3109/10408444.2012.710948.
- Heindel JJ, Skakkebaek NE, Toppari J, Hauser R, Juul A, Mansouri N, et al. Prioritizing chronic disease prevention: An urgent call to action on endocrine-disrupting chemicals. Lancet Diabetes Endocrinol. 2015;3(4):275-6. doi:10.1016/S2213-8587(15)00041-4.
- La Merrill MA, Vandenberg LN, Smith MT, Goodson W, Browne P, Patisaul HB, et al. Con- sensus on the key characteristics of endocrine- disrupting chemicals as a basis for hazard iden- tification. Nat Rev Endocrinol. 2020;16(1):45-57. doi:10.1038/s41574-019-0273-8.
- Trasande L, Lampa E, Lind L, Shu H, Borne- hag CG. Cardiometabolic risk and early- life exposure to endocrine-disrupting chemicals. Rev Endocr Metab Disord. 2020;21(3):317-24. doi:10.1007/s11154-020-09529-7.
- Wang C, Liu L, Zhao Z, Wang Y, Liu C, Teng Y, et al. Effects of endocrine- disrupting chemicals on estrogen receptor alpha and beta and their roles in reproductive toxi- city. Ecotoxicol Environ Saf. 2020;201:110826. doi:10.1016/j.ecoenv.2020.110826.
- Kahn LG, Philippat C, Nakayama SF, Slama R, Trasande L. Endocrine-disrupting chemicals: im- plications for human health. Lancet Diabetes Endocrinol. 2020;8(8):703-18. doi:10.1016/S2213-8587(20)30129-7.
- Demeneix B, Slama R. Endocrine disrup- tors: From scientific evidence to human health protection. Int J Mol Sci. 2019;20(11):2885. doi:10.3390/ijms20112885.
- Crews D, Willingham E, Skipper JK. Endocrine disruptors: present issues, future directions. The Quarterly Review of Biology. 2000;75(3):243-60. doi:10.1086/393498.
- Giulivo M, de Alda ML, Capri E, Barceló D. Human exposure to endocrine-disrupting compounds: Their role in reproductive sys- tems, metabolic syndrome, and breast can- cer. A review. Environ Res. 2016;151:251-64. doi:10.1016/j.envres.2016.07.011.
- Zhang H, Chen X, Yang Y, Sun H, Wu X, Zhang Y, et al. Effects of endocrine disruptors on the thyroid hormone system and related mechanisms. Ecotoxicology and Environmental Safety. 2021;208:111695. doi:10.1016/j.ecoenv.2020.111695.
- Taxvig C. Mechanistic evaluation of endocrine disrupting chemicals. Technical University of Denmark; 2011.
- Sifakis S, Androutsopoulos VP, Tsatsakis AM, Spandidos DA. Human exposure to endocrine disrupting chemicals: Effects on the male and female reproductive systems. Environmental Toxicology and Pharmacology. 2017;51:56-70. doi:10.1016/j.etap.2017.02.024.
- Amir S, Shah ST, Mamoulakis C, Docea AO, Kalantzi OI, Zachariou A, et al. Endocrine dis- ruptors acting on estrogen and androgen path- ways cause reproductive disorders through mul- tiple mechanisms: a review. International Jour- nal of Environmental Research and Public Health. 2021;18(4):1464. doi:10.3390/ijerph18041464.
- Kumar M, Sarma DK, Shubham S, Kumawat M, Verma V, Prakash A, et al. Environ- mental endocrine-disrupting chemical expo- sure: role in non-communicable diseases. Frontiers in Public Health. 2020;8:553850. doi:10.3389/fpubh.2020.553850.
- Alemany M. The metabolic syndrome, a human disease. International Jour- nal of Molecular Sciences. 2024;25(4):2251. doi:10.3390/ijms25042251.
- Ruiz D, Becerra M, Jagai JS, Ard K, Sar- gis RM. Disparities in environmental ex- posures to endocrine-disrupting chemicals and diabetes risk in vulnerable popula- tions. Diabetes Care. 2018;41(1):193-205. doi:10.1038/nrendo.2016.186.
- Street ME, Angelini S, Bernasconi S, Bur- gio E, Cassio A, Catellani C, et al. Cur- rent knowledge on endocrine disrupting chem- icals (EDCs) from animal biology to humans, from pregnancy to adulthood: highlights from a national Italian meeting. International Journal of Molecular Sciences. 2018;19(6):1647. doi:10.3390/ijms19061647.
- Annamalai J, Namasivayam V. Endocrine disrupting chemicals in the atmosphere:Their effects on humans and wildlife. En- vironment International. 2015;76:78-97. doi:10.1016/j.envint.2014.12.006.
- Kabir ER, Rahman MS, Rahman I. A re- view on endocrine disruptors and their possi- ble impacts on human health. Environmental Toxicology and Pharmacology. 2015;40(1):241-58. doi:10.1016/j.etap.2015.06.009.
- Canton H. Food and agriculture organization of the United Nations—FAO. In: The Europa Direc- tory of International Organizations 2021. Rout- ledge; 2021. p. 297-305.
- Kassotis CD, Vandenberg LN, Demeneix BA, Porta M, Slama R, Trasande L. Endocrine- disrupting chemicals: economic, regulatory, and policy implications. The Lancet Di- abetes & Endocrinology. 2020;8(8):719-30. doi:10.1016/S2213-8587(20)30128-5.
- Sharma BM, Scheringer M, Chakraborty P, Bharat GK, Steindal EH, Trasande L, et al. Un- locking India’s potential in managing endocrine- disrupting chemicals (EDCs): importance, chal- lenges, and opportunities. Exposure and Health. 2023;15(4):841-55. doi:10.1007/s12403-022-00519-8.
- Cuppen E, Breukers S, Hisschemöller M, Bergsma E. Q methodology to select participants for a stakeholder dialogue on en- ergy options from biomass in the Nether- lands. Ecological Economics. 2010;69(3):579-91. doi:10.1016/j.ecolecon.2009.09.005.
- Al-Saadi N, Al-hraishawi H. SOX9 Up-Regulation Can Change Survival and Anticancer Resis- tance in Different Cancer Type. Journal of Biomedicine and Biochemistry. 2023;2(3):38-44. doi:10.57238/jbb.2023.7047.1043.
- Ali Abd ZM, Jabbar NK. Circulating Microrna-22 as a biomarker related to oxidative stress in hyperthyroid women patient. Journal of Biomedicine and Biochemistry. 2023;2(3):28-37. doi:10.57238/jbb.2023.7019.1039.
- Alqurashi ZA. Incidence Rate of Thyroid Cancer in Wasit Province From (2017–2021) Related with Age and Gender. Journal of Biomedicine and Biochemistry. 2023;2(3):1-7. doi:10.57238/jbb.2023.6939.1032.
- Li X, Shen X, Jiang W, Xi Y, Li S. Comprehensive review of emerging contami- nants: Detection technologies, environmental im- pact, and management strategies. Ecotoxicol- ogy and Environmental Safety. 2024;278:116420. doi:10.1016/j.ecoenv.2024.116420.
References
Bergman A, Heindel JJ, Jobling S, Kidd KA, Zoeller T, editors. State of the Science of En- docrine Disrupting Chemicals—2012. Geneva: WHO/UNEP; 2013.
Gore AC, Chappell VA, Fenton SE, Flaws JA, Nadal A, Prins GS, et al. EDC-2: The En- docrine Society’s Second Scientific Statement on Endocrine-Disrupting Chemicals. Endocrine Re- views. 2015;36(6):E1-E150. doi:10.1210/er.2015-1010.
Diamanti-Kandarakis E, Bourguignon JP, Giu- dice LC, Hauser R, Prins GS, Soto AM, et al. Endocrine-disrupting chemicals: an Endocrine Society scientific statement. Endocrine Reviews. 2009;30(4):293-342.doi:10.1210/er.2009-0002.
Kabir ER, Rahman MS, Rahman I. A re- view on endocrine disruptors and their possi- ble impacts on human health. Environmental Toxicology and Pharmacology. 2015;40(1):241-58. doi:10.1016/j.etap.2015.06.009.
Mnif W, Hassine AIH, Bouaziz A, Bartegi A, Thomas O, Roig B. Effect of endocrine disrup- tor pesticides: A review. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health. 2011;8(6):2265-303. doi:10.3390/ijerph8062265.
Frye C, Bo E, Calamandrei G, Calza L, Dessì- Fulgheri F, Fernández M, et al. Endocrine dis- rupters: a review of some sources, effects, and mechanisms of actions on behaviour and neu- roendocrine systems. Journal of Neuroendocrinol- ogy. 2012;24(1):144-59. doi:10.1111/j.1365-2826.2011.02229.x.
Chen F, Zhou L, Bai Y, Zhou R, Chen L. The effects of endocrine-disrupting chemicals on thy- roid function and thyroid hormones. Endocrine. 2021;74(1):1-15. doi:10.1007/s12020-021-02714-1.
Kelly M, Connolly L, Dean M. Pub- lic awareness and risk perceptions of en- docrine disrupting chemicals: a qualitative study. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health. 2020;17(21):7778. doi:10.3390/ijerph17217778.
Lee DH, Porta M, Jacobs DR, Vanden- berg LN. Exposure to endocrine-disrupting chemicals and cardiometabolic mortal- ity risk: A systematic review and meta- analysis of observational studies. Science of the Total Environment. 2022;817:152504. doi:10.1016/j.scitotenv.2021.152504.
Fuhrman VF, Tal A, Arnon S. Why endocrine disrupting chemicals (EDCs) challenge traditional risk assessment and how to respond. Jour- nal of Hazardous Materials. 2015;286:589-611. doi:10.1016/j.jhazmat.2014.12.012.
Zoeller RT, Brown TR, Doan LL, Gore AC, Skakkebaek NE, Soto AM, et al. Endocrine- disrupting chemicals and public health protec- tion: A statement of principles from The En- docrine Society. Endocrinology. 2012;153(9):4097110.doi:10.1210/en.2012-1422.
Vandenberg LN, Colborn T, Hayes TB, Heindel JJ, Jacobs DRJ, Lee DH, et al. Hormones and endocrine-disrupting chemicals: Low-dose effects and nonmonotonic dose responses. Endocrine Re- views. 2012;33(3):378-455. doi:10.1210/er.2011-1050.
Kortenkamp A, Martin O, Evans R, Orton F, McKinlay R, Rosivatz E, et al. Re- sponse to a critique of the European Com- mission Document, “State of the Art Assess- ment of Endocrine Disrupters” by Rhomberg and colleagues–letter to the editor. Crit- ical Reviews in Toxicology. 2012;42(9):787-9. doi:10.3109/10408444.2012.710948.
Heindel JJ, Skakkebaek NE, Toppari J, Hauser R, Juul A, Mansouri N, et al. Prioritizing chronic disease prevention: An urgent call to action on endocrine-disrupting chemicals. Lancet Diabetes Endocrinol. 2015;3(4):275-6. doi:10.1016/S2213-8587(15)00041-4.
La Merrill MA, Vandenberg LN, Smith MT, Goodson W, Browne P, Patisaul HB, et al. Con- sensus on the key characteristics of endocrine- disrupting chemicals as a basis for hazard iden- tification. Nat Rev Endocrinol. 2020;16(1):45-57. doi:10.1038/s41574-019-0273-8.
Trasande L, Lampa E, Lind L, Shu H, Borne- hag CG. Cardiometabolic risk and early- life exposure to endocrine-disrupting chemicals. Rev Endocr Metab Disord. 2020;21(3):317-24. doi:10.1007/s11154-020-09529-7.
Wang C, Liu L, Zhao Z, Wang Y, Liu C, Teng Y, et al. Effects of endocrine- disrupting chemicals on estrogen receptor alpha and beta and their roles in reproductive toxi- city. Ecotoxicol Environ Saf. 2020;201:110826. doi:10.1016/j.ecoenv.2020.110826.
Kahn LG, Philippat C, Nakayama SF, Slama R, Trasande L. Endocrine-disrupting chemicals: im- plications for human health. Lancet Diabetes Endocrinol. 2020;8(8):703-18. doi:10.1016/S2213-8587(20)30129-7.
Demeneix B, Slama R. Endocrine disrup- tors: From scientific evidence to human health protection. Int J Mol Sci. 2019;20(11):2885. doi:10.3390/ijms20112885.
Crews D, Willingham E, Skipper JK. Endocrine disruptors: present issues, future directions. The Quarterly Review of Biology. 2000;75(3):243-60. doi:10.1086/393498.
Giulivo M, de Alda ML, Capri E, Barceló D. Human exposure to endocrine-disrupting compounds: Their role in reproductive sys- tems, metabolic syndrome, and breast can- cer. A review. Environ Res. 2016;151:251-64. doi:10.1016/j.envres.2016.07.011.
Zhang H, Chen X, Yang Y, Sun H, Wu X, Zhang Y, et al. Effects of endocrine disruptors on the thyroid hormone system and related mechanisms. Ecotoxicology and Environmental Safety. 2021;208:111695. doi:10.1016/j.ecoenv.2020.111695.
Taxvig C. Mechanistic evaluation of endocrine disrupting chemicals. Technical University of Denmark; 2011.
Sifakis S, Androutsopoulos VP, Tsatsakis AM, Spandidos DA. Human exposure to endocrine disrupting chemicals: Effects on the male and female reproductive systems. Environmental Toxicology and Pharmacology. 2017;51:56-70. doi:10.1016/j.etap.2017.02.024.
Amir S, Shah ST, Mamoulakis C, Docea AO, Kalantzi OI, Zachariou A, et al. Endocrine dis- ruptors acting on estrogen and androgen path- ways cause reproductive disorders through mul- tiple mechanisms: a review. International Jour- nal of Environmental Research and Public Health. 2021;18(4):1464. doi:10.3390/ijerph18041464.
Kumar M, Sarma DK, Shubham S, Kumawat M, Verma V, Prakash A, et al. Environ- mental endocrine-disrupting chemical expo- sure: role in non-communicable diseases. Frontiers in Public Health. 2020;8:553850. doi:10.3389/fpubh.2020.553850.
Alemany M. The metabolic syndrome, a human disease. International Jour- nal of Molecular Sciences. 2024;25(4):2251. doi:10.3390/ijms25042251.
Ruiz D, Becerra M, Jagai JS, Ard K, Sar- gis RM. Disparities in environmental ex- posures to endocrine-disrupting chemicals and diabetes risk in vulnerable popula- tions. Diabetes Care. 2018;41(1):193-205. doi:10.1038/nrendo.2016.186.
Street ME, Angelini S, Bernasconi S, Bur- gio E, Cassio A, Catellani C, et al. Cur- rent knowledge on endocrine disrupting chem- icals (EDCs) from animal biology to humans, from pregnancy to adulthood: highlights from a national Italian meeting. International Journal of Molecular Sciences. 2018;19(6):1647. doi:10.3390/ijms19061647.
Annamalai J, Namasivayam V. Endocrine disrupting chemicals in the atmosphere:Their effects on humans and wildlife. En- vironment International. 2015;76:78-97. doi:10.1016/j.envint.2014.12.006.
Kabir ER, Rahman MS, Rahman I. A re- view on endocrine disruptors and their possi- ble impacts on human health. Environmental Toxicology and Pharmacology. 2015;40(1):241-58. doi:10.1016/j.etap.2015.06.009.
Canton H. Food and agriculture organization of the United Nations—FAO. In: The Europa Direc- tory of International Organizations 2021. Rout- ledge; 2021. p. 297-305.
Kassotis CD, Vandenberg LN, Demeneix BA, Porta M, Slama R, Trasande L. Endocrine- disrupting chemicals: economic, regulatory, and policy implications. The Lancet Di- abetes & Endocrinology. 2020;8(8):719-30. doi:10.1016/S2213-8587(20)30128-5.
Sharma BM, Scheringer M, Chakraborty P, Bharat GK, Steindal EH, Trasande L, et al. Un- locking India’s potential in managing endocrine- disrupting chemicals (EDCs): importance, chal- lenges, and opportunities. Exposure and Health. 2023;15(4):841-55. doi:10.1007/s12403-022-00519-8.
Cuppen E, Breukers S, Hisschemöller M, Bergsma E. Q methodology to select participants for a stakeholder dialogue on en- ergy options from biomass in the Nether- lands. Ecological Economics. 2010;69(3):579-91. doi:10.1016/j.ecolecon.2009.09.005.
Al-Saadi N, Al-hraishawi H. SOX9 Up-Regulation Can Change Survival and Anticancer Resis- tance in Different Cancer Type. Journal of Biomedicine and Biochemistry. 2023;2(3):38-44. doi:10.57238/jbb.2023.7047.1043.
Ali Abd ZM, Jabbar NK. Circulating Microrna-22 as a biomarker related to oxidative stress in hyperthyroid women patient. Journal of Biomedicine and Biochemistry. 2023;2(3):28-37. doi:10.57238/jbb.2023.7019.1039.
Alqurashi ZA. Incidence Rate of Thyroid Cancer in Wasit Province From (2017–2021) Related with Age and Gender. Journal of Biomedicine and Biochemistry. 2023;2(3):1-7. doi:10.57238/jbb.2023.6939.1032.
Li X, Shen X, Jiang W, Xi Y, Li S. Comprehensive review of emerging contami- nants: Detection technologies, environmental im- pact, and management strategies. Ecotoxicol- ogy and Environmental Safety. 2024;278:116420. doi:10.1016/j.ecoenv.2024.116420.