The French Agency for Food, Environmental and Occupational Health & Safety (ANSES) is calling for reduced exposure – particularly for pregnant women and in the workplace – to three widely used chemicals recognized as reproductive toxicants: toluene, n-hexane and cis-CTAC (used as a preservative) – and two, identified as endocrine disrupting chemicals: the gasoline additive MBTE and o-phenylphenol (used in disinfectants and as a preservative). The Agency’s recommendations include better information about their use in products, improved air quality monitoring, more protective exposure standards and identification of safer alternatives. These chemicals are now working their way through the US endocrine disrupter screening program.
