Today I found a great great article on Enviroblog, posted on February 13. Here are some facts about Bisphenol A, or BPA that we should get under our belts, whether we knew them before or not:
(http://www.enviroblog.org/2009/02/bpa-exposure-sources.html)
BPA, a commonly used plastics chemical, leaches into food and beverage from polycarbonate plastic containers, epoxy can linings, and baby bottles.
Okay, we knew this before. After mothers in the 1980's and 1990's were advised to switch over to plastic baby bottles from glass, they switched to use plastic materials full of BPA. This goes for other kid toys and products, as well. Really not good for the kids.
(http://www.enviroblog.org/2009/02/bpa-exposure-sources.html)
BPA, a commonly used plastics chemical, leaches into food and beverage from polycarbonate plastic containers, epoxy can linings, and baby bottles.
Okay, we knew this before. After mothers in the 1980's and 1990's were advised to switch over to plastic baby bottles from glass, they switched to use plastic materials full of BPA. This goes for other kid toys and products, as well. Really not good for the kids.
A year ago, scientists at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) analyzed the data from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) and discovered that BPA contaminates the bodies of 93% of Americans tested;
We shouldn't be shocked about this, either. Nearly 40% of beverages consumed by thAmerican public are plastic water bottles. We use tons of plastic products all the time, and have exposure to small amounts of BPA all the time.
Women had higher BPA levels than men, and children and adolescents carried more BPA in their bodies compared to adults.
This is where it starts getting scary. BPA alters hormone growth and production, and if children have more BPA in their systems, their bodily development can be incredibly hampered. We see increases in parents putting their pubescent children on anti-depressants, adderall, or ritalin, whatever. Why don't we consider all the unnatural chemicals these kids have injested since they started using a bottle?
Also, females' having greater amounts surprises and alarms me, especially when BPA can be linked to ovarian cancer.
Also, females' having greater amounts surprises and alarms me, especially when BPA can be linked to ovarian cancer.
The chemical industry and FDA have based their claims for BPA's safety to children on the assumption that this chemical has a short half-life in the body and is eliminated within 24 hours. However, when Rochester team re-analyzed the NHANES data in greater depth, they detected a new, startling finding that was previously missed: when a person abstains from food for 8-24 hours and thus avoids any food-based BPA exposure, BPA levels in their body drop off but never disappear.So the short half-life of BPA doesn't clear it from your system, at all. Don't let statistics fool you.
This persistence of BPA in the body may drive a lot of health risks, including breast cancer, diabetes and heart disease.
Heart disease is a new effect of BPA I hadn't heard of before.
In 2008, Canada banned BPA use in baby bottles and took steps to minimize contamination of baby formula. Many states in the U.S. have been moving along the same path.
Though a federal or state ban of this sort could never be politically feasible, come on.
Aggravated by the FDA's inaction, consumers have taken matters into their own hands, seeking out BPA-free products. Many manufacturers eagerly responded to the consumer demand and started offering BPA-free options.
Washington's legislators need to be pushing the FDA to further fund research on BPA and pressure the agency not to side with the chemical industry.
Aggravated by the FDA's inaction, consumers have taken matters into their own hands, seeking out BPA-free products. Many manufacturers eagerly responded to the consumer demand and started offering BPA-free options.
Washington's legislators need to be pushing the FDA to further fund research on BPA and pressure the agency not to side with the chemical industry.
As reported by the Journal Sentinel, "The research indicates for the first time that people are either constantly being bombarded with bisphenol A from non-food sources, such as receipts and plastic water piping, or they are storing the chemical in fat cells, unable to get rid of it as quickly as scientists have believed."
Well, I didn't expect BPA to be water-soluble.
The reference to receipts is fascinating - it is a little known fact that ordinary shopping receipts contain high levels of BPA, which smears on fingers and may end up being ingested or transferred into the body through the skin.BPA can be transferred through our skin?? This requires further research***.
An estimated 6 billion pounds of BPA are produced globally annually, generating
An estimated 6 billion pounds of BPA are produced globally annually, generating
about $6 billion in sales. In addition to food containers, BPA is an additive in many other consumer products, some like plastic water pipes and municipal water storage tanks may also leach BPA directly into the drinking water.
Really, it's everywhere.
BPA accumulates in the freshwater and marine environment, where it could damage wildlife reproduction. In 2007, an interdisciplinary team of scientists from seven different research institutions, found aquatic animals and aquatic ecosystems to be at great risk for BPA-caused endocrine disruption.
Remember that all BPA effect studies have been performed on animals due to humans' already-high amounts of injested BPA. We absolutely do need to worry about how this synthetic material can harm other plants and animals.
Tucked away among long data tables of a recent U.S. Geological Survey report a startling observation that BPA is 1 of the 5 most frequently detected chemical contaminants in groundwater sites analyzed by USGS. 30% of the samples tested by USGS scientists contained BPA. In many communities nationwide, groundwater is the main source of drinking water, and people in some communities might be continuously exposed to BPA simply from the water they drink.
This has convinced me to replace my broken Brita filter. Even if we're filling our metal bottles with tap water, we could be injesting BPA if we don't filter.
Really, it's everywhere.
BPA accumulates in the freshwater and marine environment, where it could damage wildlife reproduction. In 2007, an interdisciplinary team of scientists from seven different research institutions, found aquatic animals and aquatic ecosystems to be at great risk for BPA-caused endocrine disruption.
Remember that all BPA effect studies have been performed on animals due to humans' already-high amounts of injested BPA. We absolutely do need to worry about how this synthetic material can harm other plants and animals.
Tucked away among long data tables of a recent U.S. Geological Survey report a startling observation that BPA is 1 of the 5 most frequently detected chemical contaminants in groundwater sites analyzed by USGS. 30% of the samples tested by USGS scientists contained BPA. In many communities nationwide, groundwater is the main source of drinking water, and people in some communities might be continuously exposed to BPA simply from the water they drink.
This has convinced me to replace my broken Brita filter. Even if we're filling our metal bottles with tap water, we could be injesting BPA if we don't filter.
Water utilities have not been testing tap water for potential BPA contamination so we don't know how many people may be ingesting BPA with tap water. But with 6 billion pounds of BPA produced every year, the purity of our water supplies may very well be at risk.
Buy a water filter. H2Ox2.com.
So what...
We need to be amending policy here to keep materials from containing toxins like BPA. Whether acted upon by the FDA or EPA, this issue needs legislators' action as soon as possible. Which means we need to be opening discussions with our congressmen about this as soon as possible. Call your U.S. Rep! It's your civic duty!
***To address this comment about BPA remnants on shopping reciepts:
The Chicago Tribune reports the "Top 10 hidden sources of BPA."
(http://featuresblogs.chicagotribune.com/features_julieshealthclub/2008/09/hidden-sources.html)
- Pizza boxes made of recycled cardboard
- Recycled paper (toilet paper included)
- Credit card receipts at the gas station and your local restaurant
- Wine (fermented in BPA-resin lined vats)
- Beer
- Rubbermaid polycarbonate-lined baking tins used by Subway
- Pop cans
- Organic canned tomatoes
- Common plastic cups used in college cafeterias
- Blue-tinted hard plastic 5-gallon drinking water bottles. (Some water filters that store filtered water in polycarbonate containers.)
The article also reports that BPA can be detected in human blood and breast milk, not just in human waste. Urine is most commonly tested for traces of BPA.
THANKS! To Brittany and Chris for taking pictures of their BPA-free plastic water containers. Brittany uses a Thermos Intak plastic bottle and Chris models the Nalgene sold at the Boston University Barnes and Noble. I prefer metal containers, but these bottles are examples of newer, BPA-free plastic materials that boast safety.
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