Let’s talk about something that even most healthcare professionals never learn in school… including me.
Did you know that many modern drugs, and the plastic supplies we use to administer them, are made from petroleum?
Yes. The crude oil used to make gasoline and diesel fuels is also the foundational building block of many pharmaceuticals and medical devices. The truth is, the healthcare industry has a hidden addiction to fossil fuels, and the consequences go far beyond climate impact [1].
Petrochemical Pharmaceuticals: What Does That Really Mean?
Many people assume that medicines are either derived from nature, like plant extracts and antibiotics, or are simply “synthetic.” But what does “synthetic” actually mean in the context of pharmaceuticals?
Most modern drugs are not just mixed up from random chemicals. They are engineered in laboratories using building blocks known as petrochemical feedstocks. These include compounds like benzene, toluene, ethylene, and xylene, which are all derived from crude oil and natural gas during petroleum refining [2].
These petrochemicals are industrial byproducts that form the molecular backbone of a vast array of pharmaceuticals. Here’s how they show up in your medicine cabinet:
- Analgesics (pain relievers such as acetaminophen)
- Antidepressants (including SSRIs and tricyclics)
- Antihistamines
- Antibiotics
- Countless other medications (by prescription and over-the-counter)
Besides shaping the active ingredients, petrochemicals are also used in the solvents, binders, fillers, and coatings that help stabilize drugs, extend their shelf life, and control how they’re released in your body [3].
Plastic, Plastics Everywhere…
It’s not just the drugs. It’s how we deliver them.
Plastics made from petroleum are everywhere in healthcare, not just in drugs but in how they’re delivered and used. According to a 2010 estimate, plastics used in U.S. health care consume an estimated 0.2% of total petroleum, a small percentage, but considering how many industries depend on oil, that’s significant [4].
Plastics derived from oil are used in:
- IV bags and tubing: Often made from PVC, softened with phthalates to increase flexibility
- Pill bottles and blister packs: Protecting medications and ensuring dosage accuracy
- Disposable gloves, catheters, and test kits: Critical for infection control and diagnostics
- Syringes, surgical instruments, and personal protective equipment (PPE): Ensuring sterile, single-use safety
- Medical packaging and sterilization wraps: Maintaining sterility and extending shelf life
These materials are praised for being lightweight, flexible, and sterile, but they’re also persistent pollutants.
A 2020 research found that the global healthcare sector contributes ~4.4% of net global emissions, and much of that comes from manufacturing, transportation, and disposal of plastic-based medical supplies [5].
The U.S. healthcare system alone generates about 1.7 million tons of plastic waste annually, accounting for roughly 8.5% of U.S. greenhouse gas emissions [6]. Hospitals produce over 5 million tons of waste yearly, with plastics making up about 25% of that total.
So What’s the Health Risk?
Now here’s the kicker: these materials don’t just disappear. They can leach, off-gas, or accumulate.
Let’s break it down:
- Phthalates (used in soft plastics): Linked to hormonal disruption, reduced sperm quality, endometriosis, and insulin resistance [7].
- Bisphenol A (BPA): An endocrine-disrupting compound used in polycarbonate plastics. Associated with breast/prostate cancer, obesity, and behavioral issues in children [8].
- Residual solvents used in drug synthesis (like toluene, hexane, and methylene chloride): Some are classified as carcinogens or reprotoxicants by regulatory bodies like IARC and REACH.
And all this exposure is amplified in vulnerable populations, like newborns in the NICU, patients on long-term IV therapy, or people undergoing chemotherapy.
Environmental Impact: Beyond the Body
Once used, many of these medical plastics and pharmaceuticals become hazardous waste. Burning them can release dioxins. Disposing of them in landfills can pollute groundwater. And improperly discarded drugs can enter our waterways, affecting aquatic life and even showing up in tap water [9].
Despite increasing interest in green chemistry, biodegradable plastics, and plant-based drug synthesis, there are still very few scalable alternatives, largely because petroleum is cheap, available, and deeply entrenched in the supply chain.
What Can We Do?
The good news? There are alternatives, and it starts with awareness.
Here’s how we can shift things forward:
- Educate ourselves and others, Know the source of your meds, supplements, and supplies.
- Support herbal and natural remedies when safe and appropriate. Many herbs have active constituents that work in harmony with the body, with established safety profiles. Choose dosage forms like teas, powders and tinctures without synthetic additives.
- Choose clean supplements, Look for brands free from artificial dyes, binders, and petrochemical solvents.
- Use glass and stainless steel in your home apothecary and food storage to minimize plastic exposure.
- Advocate for regenerative solutions in healthcare, think compostable packaging, reusable supplies, and green hospitals.
The truth is, petrochemical pharmaceuticals are not just a chemical issue, they’re an ecological and ethical issue too.
Let’s reclaim medicine, not just in what we take, but in what we stand for as practitioners and consumers.
Comment below if this raised questions or sparked a fire in you. Let’s talk alternatives, awareness, and action.
References:
- Hess, Jeremy, Daniel Bednarz, Jaeyong Bae, and Jessica Pierce. 2011. “Petroleum and Health Care: Evaluating and Managing Health Care’s Vulnerability to Petroleum Supply Shifts.” American Journal of Public Health 101 (9): 1568–79. https://doi.org/10.2105/ajph.2011.300233.
- Romany, Fernando. 2023. “Petrochemicals and Their Uses | Anchorage Investments.” Anchorage Investments. March 27, 2023. https://anchinv.com/petrochemicals-and-their-uses/.
- Zaid, Abdel Naser. 2020. “Comprehensive Review on Pharmaceutical Film Coating: Past, Present, and Future” Drug Design Development and Therapy Volume 14: 4613–23. https://doi.org/10.2147/dddt.s277439.
- Hess, Jeremy, Daniel Bednarz, Jaeyong Bae, and Jessica Pierce. 2011. “Petroleum and Health Care: Evaluating and Managing Health Care’s Vulnerability to Petroleum Supply Shifts.” American Journal of Public Health 101 (9): 1568–79. https://doi.org/10.2105/ajph.2011.300233.
- Arup and Health Care Without Harm. 2019. Health Care’s Climate Footprint: How the Health Sector Contributes to the Global Climate Crisis and Opportunities for Action.https://global.noharm.org/sites/default/files/documents-files/5961/HealthCaresClimateFootprint_092319.pdf
- Rizan, Chantelle, Frances Mortimer, Rachel Stancliffe, and Mahmood F Bhutta. 2020. “Plastics in Healthcare: Time for a Re-evaluation.” Journal of the Royal Society of Medicine 113 (2): 49–53. https://doi.org/10.1177/0141076819890554.
- Wang, Yufei, and Haifeng Qian. 2021. “Phthalates and Their Impacts on Human Health.” Healthcare 9 (5): 603. https://doi.org/10.3390/healthcare9050603.
- Cimmino, Ilaria, Francesca Fiory, Giuseppe Perruolo, Claudia Miele, Francesco Beguinot, Pietro Formisano, and Francesco Oriente. 2020. “Potential Mechanisms of Bisphenol a (BPA) Contributing to Human Disease.” International Journal of Molecular Sciences 21 (16): 5761. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms21165761.
- Padmanabhan, K.K., and Debabrata Barik. 2018. “Health Hazards of Medical Waste and Its Disposal.” In Elsevier eBooks, 99–118. https://doi.org/10.1016/b978-0-08-102528-4.00008-0.