This new book recommends that parents limit a baby’s exposure to certain cleaning products, baby powders, baby oil, mineral oil, petroleum jelly and artificial fragrances because some products contain hazardous substances.

Two medical experts from Rhode Island who believe there is not enough time to wait for the government to regulate dangerous chemicals used in household products have published their own book on how to avoid such chemicals.

Safer for Your Baby — A Guide to Living Better with Fewer Chemicals is available for $9.95 in health food stores, Whole Foods Markets, and by going to http://www.saferforyourbaby.com/.

The authors are Lynn Tondat Ruggeri and Laura Costa, both physiological psychologists who want to help people use safer household products and minimize exposure to harmful chemicals for babies or young children, who are most vulnerable to the dangerous chemicals.

Ruggeri was awarded professor emerita by the University of Massachusetts Dartmouth in 2002. She started working there in 1975, specializing in studies of the brain and behavior. Her interests were nutrition, health and environmental toxins, as well as attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, drug addiction and immune system enhancement.

Costa is an experimental psychologist with experience in research, teaching and publishing.

Both say they have experienced sensitivity to chemicals in their lives, and consequently worked to reduce their own exposure to toxins.

They contend that more than 1,000 new manmade chemicals are introduced each year without being tested for safety.

“While we wait for the government to create and enforce regulations or for companies to ‘do the right thing,’ is there something that we can do?” they ask in their book. “The answer is YES!”

The book gives directions for reading warning labels and understanding ingredient lists. It suggests what chemicals to avoid, and discusses how household chemicals get into peoples’ bodies — often by breathing the fumes.

Some surprising concerns: they recommend against using baby powders because they can be contaminated with asbestos or contain petrochemical fragrances and can get into a baby’s lungs. Baby oil, mineral oil and petroleum jelly should be avoided, too, they say, because they often contain traces of toxic chemicals and metals.

They also warn that artificial fragrances can harm babies.

The book gives advice on cooking, food packaging, cleaning products, carpets and home furnishings.

The authors are available for educational workshops and presentations to schools and groups by going to info@saferforyourbaby.org or by writing to SaferWorks, P.O. Box 1227, Hope Valley, RI 02832.