4. Conclusion

These few examples underline just how vital it is to assess the actual mixtures to which individuals are exposed, and to test their effects on appropriate models. Initially, experimental evidence, notably on different animal species and on cell lines in culture, supported the notion of a "mixture effect" or "cocktail effect", but paradoxically, given the stakes for human health, proof of concept of the existence of these cocktail effects had not yet been provided in humans. This has now been partly achieved. However, there are 150,000 compounds whose combined action could have unexpected effects on health, including environmental pollutants (solvents, plastics), as well as drugs and certain substances in our diet. Given, among other things, the gaps in our knowledge of the risks associated with exposure to low-dose mixtures of certain endocrine disruptors over a lifetime, biomonitoring studies,...