That would be a great point if health and longevity were controlled by a single variable, and that variable happened to be phthalate intake. But we know health

That would be a great point if health and longevity were controlled by a single variable, and that variable happened to be phthalate intake. But we know health and longevity are controlled by a dizzying number of factors that interact, so your suspicion, right or wrong, isn't justified by your observation. For example, far fewer people smoke today than did 30 years ago; medical treatments are more advanced than they were 30 years ago. And finally, phthalates were in widespread use 30 years ago too. Phthalates may have been harming us all along but those other improvements still result in an overall improvement in health and longevity.