Environmental Chemicals

CDC’s National Biomonitoring Program (NBP) determines which environmental chemicals people have been exposed to and the amount of those chemicals in their bodies.

Environmental chemicals refer to a chemical compound or chemical element present in air, water, food, soil, dust, or other environmental media such as consumer products.

Currently, more than 400 environmental chemicals or their metabolites are measured in human samples (e.g. urine, blood, serum, breast milk, and meconium). CDC’s National Biomonitoring Program provides information on human health effects, national surveillance data, and additional learning resources for each chemical and chemical group studied.

• Acrylamide
• Cotinine
• N,N-Diethyl-meta-toluamide (DEET)
• Dioxin-Like Chemicals
• Disinfection By-Products (Trihalomethanes)
• Environmental Phenols
  • Benzophenone-3
  • Bisphenol A (BPA)
  • Triclosan
  • 4-tert-Octylphenol
• Fungicides and Herbicides
  • Sulfonylurea Herbicides
• Metals
  • Arsenic
  • Cadmium
  • Lead
  • Mercury
• Insecticides and Pesticides
• NNAL (4-(methylnitrosamino)-1-(3-pyridyl)-1-butanol)
• Non-Dioxin-Like Polychlorinated Biphenyls (PCBs)
• Parabens
• Perchlorate
• Perflourochemicals (PFCs)
• Phthalates
  • Benzylbutyl Phthalate
  • Di-2-ethylhexyl Phthalate
  • Dicyclohexyl Phthalate
  • Diethyl Phthalate
  • Di-isononyl Phthalate
  • Dimethyl Phthalate
  • Di-n-butyl Phthalate/Di-isobutyl Phthalate
  • Di-n-octyl Phthalate
• Polybrominated Diphenyl Ethers (PBDEs) and Polybrominated biphenyl (PBB)
• Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons (PAHs)
• Volatile Organic Compounds (VOCs)
  • Benzene3
  • Methyl tert-Butyl Ether (MTBE)
  • Styrene

Additional Resources

• Chemical Factsheets
• Biomonitoring Summaries
• Peer-Reviewed Biomonitoring Articles
• Human Biomonitoring of Environmental Chemicalspdf icon
  Reprinted with the permission of American Scientist.
• Biomonitoring: Making a Difference Flash Presentation
• NCEH/ATSDR
• National Research Council: Human Biomonitoring for Environmental Chemicalsexternal icon
• CDC’s National Report on Human Exposure to Environmental Chemicals