Chemical BPA in workers linked to sex problems

NEW YORK CITY -- Researchers say heavy exposure to a chemical widely used in hard plastic bottles has been linked to sexual problems among male factory workers in China.

Bisphenol A, or BPA, is used in a wide variety of consumer products, including some hard plastic bottles and metal food or beverage cans.

Scientists have been concerned that BPA exposure might harm the reproductive and nervous systems, and possibly promote prostate and breast cancers.

But the lead author of the latest study says consumers shouldn't be alarmed by the findings. He says the 164 Chinese factory workers studied experienced BPA levels about 50 times higher than those faced by typical American men.

The study is being published online Wednesday in the journal Human Reproduction.

(Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press.  All Rights Reserved.)