Buyer beware

Concern about the safety of endocrine disruptors has caught on in Europe, Japan, South America, the Middle East, Mexico and even Fiji.

Reports of declining sperm counts, birth defects and fertility problems have sparked widespread concern there. The European Union has banned 1,100 chemicals from cosmetics that are thought to cause cancer or reproductive harm. "When we go to Europe, I breathe a sigh of relief because of all of the things I'm not exposed to over there," said Rochester's Swan, an epidemiologist and biostatistician. Earlier this year, the European Union passed a law that requires chemical companies to prove their products are safe before they are put on the market.

The U.S. has no such protocol, known as the precautionary principle, and the chemical industry has argued against it