The industrialization of the agricultural sector has increased the chemical burden on natural ecosystems. Pesticides are agrochemicals used in agricultural lands, public health programs, and urban green areas in order to protect plants and humans from various diseases. However, due to their known ability to cause a large number of negative health and environmental effects, their side effects can be an important environmental health risk factor. The urgent need for a more sustainable and ecological approach has produced many innovative ideas, among them agriculture reforms and food production implementing sustainable practice evolving to food sovereignty. It is more obvious than ever that the society needs the implementation of a new agricultural concept regarding food production, which is safer for man and the environment, and to this end, steps such as the declaration of Nyéléni have been taken.

Over the last decades, many tonnes of man-made chemicals have been produced and released into the environment. Many of these chemical substances have the ability to modulate the action of hormones and are called endocrine disrupters. Cell receptors that have been pure receptors for thousands of years have (due to industrialization), become susceptible to the action of exogenous chemicals. The balance of the endocrine system is very important in the human body especially in females because the menstrual cycle and fertility are very sensitive to hormone imbalances. This review considers the mode of exposure and action of endocrine disrupters and focuses on their impact on the female reproductive system, including female hormone concentrations, menstrual cycle, fertility, spontaneous abortion and the development of endometriosis. An attempt is made to elucidate the impact of endocrine disrupters on the female reproductive system, while admitting that most scientific data come from experimental animals and the conclusions cannot be applied to humans easily. The aim is to present available information, highlighting the impact of endocrine disrupters on the female reproductive system, in order to stimulate reevaluation in identifying hormone disorders.

No abstract

Exposure to chemicals from different sources in everyday life is widespread; one such source is the wide range of products listed under the title "cosmetics", including the different types of popular and widely-advertised sunscreens. Women are encouraged through advertising to buy into the myth of everlasting youth, and one of the most alarming consequences is in utero exposure to chemicals. The main route of exposure is the skin, but the main endpoint of exposure is endocrine disruption. This is due to many substances in cosmetics and sunscreens that have endocrine active properties which affect reproductive health but which also have other endpoints, such as cancer. Reducing the exposure to endocrine disruptors is framed not only in the context of the reduction of health risks, but is also significant against the background and rise of ethical consumerism, and the responsibility of the cosmetics industry in this respect. Although some plants show endocrine-disrupting activity, the use of well-selected natural products might reduce the use of synthetic chemicals. Instruments dealing with this problem include life-cycle analysis, eco-design, and green labels; in combination with the committed use of environmental management systems, they contribute to "corporate social responsibility".