Methyl Tertiary-Butyl Ether Exposure from Gasoline in the U.S. Population, NHANES 2001-2012

Methyl tertiary-butyl ether (MTBE) was used as a gasoline additive in the United States during 1995-2006. Because of concerns about potential exposure and health effects, some U.S. states began banning MTBE use in 2002, leading to a nationwide phaseout in 2006.

We investigated the change in blood MTBE that occurred during the years in which MTBE was being phased out of gasoline.

We used data from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) from 2001-2012 to assess the change in blood MTBE over this period. We fit sample-weighted multivariate linear regression models to 12,597 human blood MTBE concentrations from the NHANES 2001-2002 to 2011-2012 survey cycles.

The unweighted proportion of the individuals with MTBE blood levels above the limit of detection (LOD) of $$ was 93.9% for 2001-2002. This portion dropped to 25.4% for the period 2011-2012. Weighted blood MTBE median levels (ng/L) (25th and 75th percentiles) decreased from $$ for the period from 2001-2002 to $$ for the period from 2005-2006. For the entire postban period (2007-2012), MTBE median levels were below the detection limit of $$.

These decreases in blood MTBE coincided with multiple statewide bans that began in 2002 and a nationwide ban in 2006. The multivariate log-linear regression model for the NHANES 2003-2004 data showed significantly higher blood MTBE concentrations in the group who pumped gasoline less than 7 h before questionnaire administration compared to those who pumped gasoline more than 12 h before questionnaire administration ($$). This study is the first large-scale, national-level confirmation of substantial decrease in blood MTBE levels in the general population following the phaseout of the use of MTBE as a fuel additive. https://doi.org/10.1289/EHP5572.