Impact of Environmental Chemicals in Reproduction

A group I am in was touring a local business recently when we came across some items stored in a box with the notation "pthalate free." We all wondered why that was important, and I did a little research for the group. It turns out phtalates are suspected of affecting the endocrine system in people, with a variety of possible impacts, especially among children. Here's a link to a story by CBS News on this chemical. I came across another article that should inspire people to make some effort to reduce their exposure to environmental pollutants. In a recent article by USA Today, environmental chemicals are cited as one of the possible reasons for early onset puberty in girls. Can you imagine going through puberty as early as 7? It was bad enough at 12/13, which was when I started that transformation (my daughter was 9 and I sure wasn't ready then either!) Guess this is one way to approach population control.