Urinary bisphenol A trends and associations with processed food consumption in Korean adults: Korean National Environmental Health Survey (KoNEHS) 2009-2020.

Bisphenol A (BPA) is a high-production industrial chemical used in polycarbonate plastics and epoxy resins. Dietary intake is a major exposure pathway for the general population due to BPA migration from food-contact materials. Using nationally representative data from the Korean National Environmental Health Survey (KoNEHS; Cycles 1-4, 2009-2020), we evaluated temporal trends in urinary BPA concentrations among 18,050 adults and assessed associations with processed food consumption. Analyses accounted for the complex survey design, and urinary BPA concentrations were adjusted for creatinine. In pooled analyses adjusting for demographic and lifestyle factors, frequent consumption of processed foods-particularly canned foods (β = 0.134), instant noodles (β = 0.180), and burgers (β = 0.116)-was associated with higher urinary BPA concentrations. Urinary BPA concentrations increased during 2012-2017 and declined from 2018 onward, a temporal pattern consistent with strengthened national regulations related to food-contact materials and plastic waste management in South Korea. These findings identify processed food consumption as an important dietary correlate of BPA exposure and support continued biomonitoring to inform exposure-reduction strategies and risk management for food-contact materials.