Concerns regarding whether a chemical called Bisphenol A and whether it is harmful to humans are ever so growing considering the fact that the chemical is used to harden plastic in consumer products including baby bottles, food containers, cling wrap, toys, CDs, sunglasses, and thousands of other products.

A number of independent researchers say tests on animals and other research indicates that Bisphenol A can be toxic at very low doses.

Program has yet to find significant danger from the drug. Last month the panel released a preliminary report finding that Bisphenol A is of some concern for fetuses and small children. But it found that adults have almost nothing to worry about.

Still, many researchers say that Bisphenol A, known as BPA, may cause a wide range of health problems, including breast and prostate cancer, infertility, diabetes, brain damage, even obesity. And they warn that the chemical is especially toxic to babies and children.

These scientists point to hundreds of studies showing that Bisphenol A harms animals. They say problems occur at exposure levels equivalent to those commonly seen in humans.

Several state legislatures, including those of California and Minnesota, have considered, but not passed, bills limiting use of BPA. This year, Prince Georges County Del. James W. Hubbard, a Democrat, introduced a bill outlawing use of BPA in baby products, including toys and bottles. The bill was voted down; Hubbard will try again in the January legislative session.

The controversy is part of a larger debate over how to measure the risks posed by the thousands of industrial chemicals that have become part of our lives over the past century - everything from plastics to Teflon to formaldehyde. Many activists and researchers say government rules allow industry to use potentially dangerous compounds without first ensuring the chemicals' safety.

In the U.S., industrial chemicals are regulated under the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA). Passed in 1976, the law requires companies to ask the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency for permission to use new chemicals. But companies do not have to test for potential health hazards, or provide any proof that the compound isn't hazardous.

Since the law passed, more than 82,000 chemicals have been registered with the EPA; environmental health scientist Michael Wilson says only a few thousand have received careful vetting. "The great majority of chemicals in common use have not been adequately studied for their effects on human health," says Wilson, executive director of the Center for Occupational and Environmental Health at the University of California, Berkeley. "The big picture is that there's a complete lack of basic public health information."

But the chemical industry says the law is effective. "It's absolutely clear that the EPA has the necessary regulatory authority to ensure that chemicals are safe," says Michael Walls, managing director of the American Chemistry Council, the industry's trade group. "TSCA is a strong statutory framework for chemical regulation."