A National Research Council panel said that the Environmental Protection Agency should study the combined effect of phthalates rather than studying them individually. NRC panel said that the agency must adopt a “paradigm shift” in the way it assesses the chemicals’ toxicity to humans.

Previous studies have shown the presence of phthalates in everyone, including pregnant women and babies. A report released from the National Research Council said that phthalates and other hormone-disrupting chemicals pollute the air, water and dust and are found in hundreds of consumer products — including bug spray, perfume, pesticides, shower curtains, food containers, and plastic toys.

The report says that various animal and human studies have linked all of these chemicals to a wide spectrum of problems, from reduced sperm counts to genital malformations.

Sarah Janssen of the National Resources Defense Council, an environmental group says that this report will allow the EPA to figure out the maximum level to which humans can safely be exposed and create regulations to protect Americans from exposures that could be harmful.

Deborah Cory-Slechta, chairwoman of the committee said that the best way to protect people — especially infants and fetuses, whose reproductive systems are still developing — is to measure the cumulative impact of this hormonal barrage. In fact, she the EPA should always consider cumulative effects — not just for hormone disruptors, but for all potential toxins.