Recently, plastics and the components they release have become an area of significant public concern. From their advent in the 1930s, petroleum-derived plastic polymers have been generally regarded as a safe, durable, and inert alternative to household glass and ceramics. However, over the past two decades, an increasing body of information led to the identification of substances released from plastics that may present various risks to human health. Potential toxicants released from hydrocarbon-derived plastic materials include pthalates (pthalate esters), bisphenol A, and styrene (1,2).

Phthalate esters are components of many commercial plastic products, used to increase the flexibility of the materials, and are composed of the dialkyl or alkyl aryl esters of phthalic acid (1,2-benzenedicarboxylic acid). Phthalates are used in numerous consumer products, including building materials, household and personal furnishings, clothing, cosmetics, personal care products, pharmaceutical products, nutritional supplements, medical devices and tubing, dentures, children's toys, food packaging, and cleaning materials and insecticides (3).

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