Determination of UV filters in human breast milk using turbulent flow chromatography and babies’ daily intake estimation

UV filters (UV-Fs) are a group of hormonally active chemical compounds used to protect against the deleterious effects of UVA and UVB solar radiation, which are currently present in most consumer goods (personal care products, plastics, fabrics, paints, etc). Last years the concern about these emerging contaminants has been on the rise, and increasing efforts are being taken in order to properly asses the hazard that the exposure to these compounds in the early stages of life may pose. In this study, a new method for the analysis of 11 UV-Fs residues in human breast milk samples has been developed. The method is based on turbulent flow chromatography coupled to liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (TFC-HPLC-MS/MS). The validated method was successfully applied to 79 human breast milk samples from mothers in Barcelona (Spain). Twenty-four per cent of the samples contained UV-Fs, with major contributors being oxybenzone (benzophenone 3, BP3), its metabolite 4,4′-dihydroxybenzophenone (4DHB), and UV320 showing maximum concentrations of 779.9, 73.3, and 523.6 ng g−1 milk, respectively. Additionally, the plastic containers of the milks were also analysed, revealing high concentrations of BP3 and 4DHB, up to 10.6 µg g−1 plastic. The calculated mean ΣUV-Fs were useful to estimate the daily intake (EDI) by babies, which were 69.1 µg d−1kg−1 body weight.