On 10-12 May 2005, about 170 international experts and scientists gathered in Prague for a workshop on endocrine disrupters (chemicals interfering with hormone systems). It was mostly organized to discuss recent European research on those chemicals. Indeed, large research projects were funded by the EU and gathered into a program called CREDO (Cluster of Research into Endocrine Disruption in Europe). The results presented at Prague reinforced concerns about the long-term effects of endocrine disrupters, especially on men’s fertility in Europe, and those results were expressed in the Declaration.

The most common chemicals interfering with hormone systems are: pesticides, bulk produced chemicals, flame retardants, agents used as plasticizers, cosmetic ingredients, pharmaceuticals, and natural products such as plant-derived estrogens and many more. The links between these chemicals and their effects has been proven in wildlife, which is likely to mean that it can be applied for human beings. “Wildlife provides early warnings of effects produced by endocrine disrupters which may as yet be unobserved in humans,” said Andreas Kortenkamp, coordinator of CREDO and the EU-funded EDEN research project.

The Prague Declaration is a very important reference document for policy makers in the sense that it updates everyone on research progress about those burning issues. Moreover, it makes constructive suggestions that might lead to better protection of human life.

 Read the Prague Declaration on Endocrine Disruption

REACH

Another important aspect of the Declaration is its links to current European legislations. Indeed, the wide range of chemicals that can be identified as endocrine disrupters is also taken into account in the EU legislation REACH (Research, Evaluation and Authorisation of Chemicals), that would put them under an authorization procedure in the European production and importation. The Declaration is therefore another argument in favour of a strong REACH legislation.