Bisphenol A, a compound found in many water bottles and known to leach into water has now been linked to brain and mood problems in primates.

Researchers at the Yale School of Medicine have linked a chemical found in everyday plastics to problems with brain function and mood disorders in monkeys — the first time the chemical has been connected to health problems in primates.

The study is the latest in an accumulation of research that has raises concerns about bisphenol A, or BPA, a compound that gives a shatterproof quality to polycarbonate plastic and has been found to leach from plastic into food and water.

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BPA, in commercial use since the 1950s, is found in a wide variety of everyday items, including sports bottles, baby bottles, food containers and compact discs. One recent federal study estimated that the chemical is found in the urine of 93 percent of the population.

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Sen. Charles E. Schumer (D-N.Y.) is sponsoring a bill to prohibit BPA from children’s products, while Rep. Edward J. Markey (D-Mass.) wants to bar it from all food and drink packaging.

Canada intends to ban the chemical from baby bottles and Wal-Mart and Toys R Us intend to drop bisphenol A products next year. For those not wanting to wait until next year to avoid harmful toxins, there are some plastic baby and sports bottles without BPA. I reviewed the excellent and inexpensive Platypus water bottles in April.