Pregnant women exposed to higher levels of the chemical bisphenol A gave birth to baby boys with lower thyroid hormones, according to a new study published today. The study by University of California, Berkeley, scientists is the first to link the ubiquitous chemical – found in hard plastics, canned foods and paper receipts – to altered thyroid hormones in babies, and it adds to evidence that BPA may have some effects on fetuses. For every doubling of the mothers’ BPA levels, there was a 9.9 percent decrease in thyroid-stimulating hormones in their baby boys. No significant effect was detected in the girls. Scientists do not know what, if anything, the reductions in thyroid hormones might mean for the health of the babies because their levels remained within the range considered normal. But previous research suggests that reduced thyroid hormones might impair learning abilities and motor skills because they control brain development.

Read more at Environmental Health News: Study finds lower thyroid hormones in baby boys exposed to BPA