The Role of the Environment in Female Reproductive Disorders

Abstract

Global industrialization and the contemporary lifestyle have exposed humans to a broad of environmental contaminants that have the ability to perturb female hypothalamic–pituitary–ovary axis and predispose women to a clustering of reproductive disorders. With a focus on EDCs, we currently know that exposure to environmental toxicants, particularly during the sensitive periods of life, such as the embryonic period and puberty, has the potential to disrupt the reproductive function, targeting at multiple stages directly and indirectly at the level of the hypothalamus, pituitary, ovary, uterus, and vagina, increasing the risk for menstrual cycle irregularities, polycystic ovarian syndrome, endometriosis, uterine fibroids, hormone-related cancer, and disorders of puberty. Although scientific knowledge gaps still exist, contemporary data suggest that endocrine disruption of the female reproductive milieu is a central pathophysiological parameter for various disorders, warranting further experimental and clinical research, as well as increasing public policy and awareness.