Is perfume safe during pregnancy?

What does the evidence say about perfume during pregnancy?

1. Diethyl phthalate, the phthalate most associated with scented products including perfumes, deodorants, soaps, and shampoo, dropped by an average of 27.4% in urine samples after just three days of switching to labeled phthalate-free, paraben-free personal care products. 1
2. Research on prenatal phthalate exposure, the class of chemicals used to help fragrance last longer, has found associations with a thicker, more circular placenta, with the strongest associations when exposure happened later in pregnancy. 2
3. The same phthalate exposure research has also found altered DNA methylation patterns in exposed offspring linked to later metabolic and cardiovascular outcomes, an active and still-developing area of study. 2
4. A pooled analysis of over 6,000 pregnancies found that a DEHP phthalate metabolite measured during the first and second trimesters was associated with modestly higher odds of preterm birth, though the estimate bordered on not statistically significant, and the association was no longer present by the third trimester. 3
5. The average person encounters an estimated 168 different chemicals through personal care products daily, and awareness of which ones to look for and avoid is still low: in one survey of women of reproductive age, fewer than a third had even heard of phthalates. 4

Is perfume safe in each trimester?

• First trimester. There's nothing specifically first-trimester about phthalate exposure from perfume, but if you're also dealing with heightened smell sensitivity or nausea, easing up on fragrance can help with both concerns at once.
• Second trimester. The same low-effort swap applies here: reaching for fragrance-free lotion, shampoo, and body wash alongside, or instead of, a spritz of perfume is a simple way to reduce your overall phthalate exposure.
• Third trimester. One pooled study linking a phthalate metabolite to preterm birth found the association was strongest in the first and second trimesters and no longer present by the third, so this isn't a reason for new restrictions this late, just a continuation of the same general approach.