In what the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC) is calling “a major victory for public health,” the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) voted 3-2 last week, to ban several harmful phthalate chemicals from plastic used in children’s toys and child care articles.
Phthalates are commonly used as a plastic softener in children’s toys and child care articles, such as teething rings. Numerous studies have linked phthalates exposure to interference with hormone production and reproductive development, especially in young children.