phthalates or phthalate alternatives

The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) has released the risk assessment on phthalates conducted for the CPSC by a congressionally mandated Chronic Hazard Advisory Panel (CHAP). In the Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act, Congress charged the CHAP with making recommendations on whether the use of additional phthalates or phthalate alternatives in children’s toys and child care articles should be restricted as banned hazardous substances. The CHAP made the following specific recommendations in its assessment of the risks of 14 phthalates and six phthalate alternatives:

  • The interim ban on the use of diisononyl phthalate (DINP) in children’s toys and child care articles at levels greater than 0.1% be made permanent because DINP “induces antiandrogenic effects in animals, although with lesser potency than other active phthalates, and therefore can contribute to the cumulative risk from other antiandrogenic phthalates.”
  • The current interim bans on di-n-octylphthalate (DNOP) and diisodecyl phthalate (DIDP) be lifted because they do not appear to possess antiandrogenic potential but that U.S. agencies responsible for dealing with DNOP and DIDP exposures from food and child care products conduct the necessary risk assessments with a view to supporting risk management steps given other toxicological endpoints of concern.

Continue Reading Report on Phthalates Recommends Permanent Ban on DINP, Additional Permanent Bans on DIBP, DPENP, DHEXP, DCHP, and an Interim Ban on DIOP