The European Court of Justice has ruled that the European Commission has not been quick enough in identifying and banning potentially harmful "endocrine disruptor" chemicals, BBC News reports.

The court ruled on Wednesday in a case brought by Sweden on behalf of the Nordic states.

Some researchers say endocrine disruptors may affect human hormones and cause disease.

The court said that the decision could be appealed within two months.

It added that a judgement such as Wednesday's, finding that a European institution had "unlawfully refrained from laying down rules", was "comparatively rare".

In its judgement it said that EU legislation adopted in May 2012 envisioned steps being taken to set criteria for testing for suspected endocrine disruptors.

In May 2014 Sweden brought the case against the Commission, saying its efforts had come to a "complete standstill" and that illnesses caused by the chemicals could be costing hundreds of millions of euros every year.

The chemicals are found in many everyday products, from food and cleaning products to plastic containers.