Phthalates are considered "hormone disruptors". Hormone disruptors are not healthy for anyone but endometriosis patients may want to be particularly wary of them.
Here is a passage from Our Stolen Future by Theo Colborn, Dianne Dumanoski, and John Peterson Myers (pages 223-224) regarding phthalates:
"Recent studies have implicated widely used synthetic compounds such as phthalates, an ingredient in plastics, and alkylphenol polyethoxylates, which are found in plastics, detergents, and many other products, in hormone disruption. We need a better understanding of what happens to such compounds in the environment".
I have posted previously about a site where one can search for the safety of specific personal care products. Here is the link again to Skin Deep. It is an excellent resource for making informed choices when purchasing health and beauty products!
Phthalates are found in everything from synthetic fragrances to detergents to plastics. There is plentiful scientific evidence of the dangers of phthalates.
Here is an excerpt from a New Haven Register article "Chemicals causing fragrance can be dangerous" published on November 26, 2008 by Nancy Alderman:
The Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC) study showed that many of the air fresheners and scented products contain phthalates. The study said "phthalates are hormone-disrupting chemicals that can be particularly dangerous for young children and unborn babies. Exposure to phthalates can affect testosterone levels and lead to reproductive abnormalities, including abnormal genitalia and reduced sperm production. ... California notes that five types of phthalates — including one that we found in air freshener products — are ‘known to cause birth defects or reproductive harm.’ Young children and pregnant women should be especially careful to avoid contact with these chemicals.
Because phthalates are hormone disruptors, doctors are most concerned about exposures to pregnant women between their eighth and 15th weeks of pregnancy. It is during that period that a delicate balance of hormones directs the development of sex organs in the fetus.
For patients like me who have MCS (multiple chemical sensitivity), simply walking into a public rest room with these potent air fresheners can induce dizziness, nausea, difficulty breathing, and feeling faint. Generally, if I enter a public rest room and the smell is so intense that I immediately feel ill, I turn around and walk back out because my body goes into "fight or flight" mode simply from the strong smell.
For more articles about phthalates, see the Environmental Health News link:
According to a MomsRising.org email on December 4, 2008:
Phthalates are used in soft plastic toys like rubber ducks and bath books and can leech out of these toys when children chew on them. Scientists worldwide have linked phthalates to EARLY ONSET OF PUBERTY IN GIRLS (a risk factor for breast cancer), birth defects in baby boys, testicular cancer and liver problems".
This is an excerpt from a notice from MomsRising.org
"Starting your holiday shopping this week? The LAST thing you want to be giving the children and babies on your list is dangerous chemicals like lead and arsenic. Yet, when the Ecology Center, a Michigan-based nonprofit, tested over 1,500 popular children's toys for lead, cadmium, arsenic, PVC and other harmful chemicals, they found that one in three toys tested were found to contain "medium" or "high" levels of chemicals of concern.
Scary, right? But knowledge truly is power in this case. Before you give a child a toy this holiday season, search the HealthyToys database for its chemical test results:
Are your kids toys toxic? Find out.
When you're at the store, you can search the HealthyToys database from your cell phone. Simply text "healthytoys [name of toy]" -- for example "healthytoys Elmo" or "healthytoys Wii" -- to 41411.
Then help other parents protect their kids. Print this flyer - which includes info on how to search for toys using your cell phone while you're shopping - and post them up at work, school, the grocery, wherever you go.
Please help spread the word that toxic toys are still on store shelves by posting this flyer in public places, and passing along this information to friends and family. (And if you're not already a member of MomsRising, please sign on now to stay informed: www.momsrising.org.)
Thanks for your help making this a more family-friendly country!
-- Donna, Kristin, Katie, Joan, Mary, Anita, and the whole MomsRising.org team
P.S. According to the Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act, toys containing toxic phthalates are supposed to be banned starting on February 10, 2009. But the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) is saying that stores can continue to sell down their inventories as long as they were manufactured before the February deadline. If you haven't already, please sign our letter to the CPSC to tell them to stop monkeying around with our kids' health! (Already 6,443 people have signed.) Go to Phthalates are banned -- We really mean it! to add your name.
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Phthalates are dangerous for everyone: young, old, endometriosis patients, healthy people, pregnant women, babies, etc.
This is not just about toxic chemicals being found in 1 of 3 childrens' toys (as appalling as that is). These chemicals affect everyone.
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This article was posted by Jeanne via "Jeanne's Endo Blog" at www.endendoat.blogspot.com.
