For those interested in the EU regulation on this, a couple of starting points are:

REACH https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Registration,_Evaluation,_Auth...

RoHS https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Restriction_of_Hazardous_Subst...

IMHO REACH didn't go far enough, it should be up to the maker of a chemical to prove that it's safe before it's sold and used.