The present study shows that the commonly used
bactericide triclosan and/or its metabolites are omnipresent
in plasma and milk from nursing mothers. Triclosan
was found, in a broad range of concentrations, in
all plasma and milk samples from both the control and
the exposed group (Figs. 2 and 3). The presence of
triclosan in the whole study population suggests that
there are sources of human exposure other than personal
care products. Indeed, triclosan is used in textile and
plastics (Adolfsson-Erici et al., 2002) and has been
found in fatty food (Remberger et al., 2002), but the
influence of these sources on triclosan levels in the
human body has not been studied. We note that improper
labeling or incomplete collection of personal care
products in the control group may have occurred consequently
placing exposed mothers in the control group.
Hence, no conclusions can be drawn from our data about
the upper range of plasma and milk concentrations resulting
from exposure to these other sources.
Sandborgh-Englund et al. (2006) found triclosan in
plasma at 0.1–8.1 ng/ml in 10 subjects, of which five
were exposed and five not exposed to triclosan via
personal care products. In that study, there was no apparent
difference in plasma triclosan concentrations between
the two groups. In the present study, there was an
even broader range of triclosan concentrations in plasma
(0.010–38 ng/g) and a large within group variability.
However, in contrast to the findings by Sandborgh-
Englund et al. (2006), the present study showed that the
triclosan concentrations in both plasma and milk were
clearly and significantly higher in the exposed group
than in the control group (Table 1) (Figs. 2 and 3). It is
noteworthy that the two individuals who were exposed
via soap and deodorant had the lowest triclosan
concentration in the exposed group on the first sampling
occasion; the seven who used toothpaste all had higher
levels. The results support the main hypothesis of the
study, namely that triclosan containing personal care
products are the dominant source of exposure to triclosan
in the general population.