BPA: Can This Chemical Hurt Your Family?

This week, an esteemed panel of scientists released a report countering the F.D.A.'s assessment of the safety of Bisphenol A (BPA), and stated that the study was flawed. I'm not sure about you, but I am once again feeling let down by the governmental bodies that are supposedly controlling the safety of chemicals in the products that my family is exposed to everyday. Among the many problems with the F.D.A's study, the panel of scientists found that the F.D.A. failed to look at the cumulative exposures of BPA and reported that the margins of safety as defined by the F.D.A as "adequate" were, in fact, inadequate.

Just last April, Canada banned the use of BPA in baby bottles. So why is our government still allowing BPA to be used? Let me suggest that our government adopt the "Precautionary Principle". This is not something that I made up. Back in 1998, the Science and Environmental Health Network convened a summit of doctors, scientists, and officials to decide what to do when there was uncertainty or disagreement in the scientific community about the safety of some new product or development. When done debating, they adopted the principle, and here it is:

When an activity raises threats of harm to human health or the environment, precautionary measures should be taken even if some cause and effect relationships are not fully established scientifically.

Makes sense, right? In fact, in 2000, the European Commission--the governing body for all the nations of the European Union--adopted this principle. Our own government has not. So until our government adopts this principle, I suggest that you do.

Here are a few tips to avoid BPA.
• Avoid polycarbonate plastic baby bottles (they're the ones with a 7 inside the recycling triangle on the bottom and are about 95 percent of the market)
• If you insist on using plastic, use polyethylene or polypropylene (1,2,4, or 5 on the bottom). They are yet to be implicated in the BPA leaching problem.
• My preference is to simply use tried and true glass baby bottles.
• As for baby formula, powdered formula carries a lower BPA risk than liquid.
• And for us adults, again, please STOP using bottled water. Buy a water pitcher and use a stainless steel water bottle.

Read more, learn more at greengoeswitheverything.com

Comments

[Lesscancer]

Here's the headline Scientist are concerned about BPA as an endocrine disruptor. Endocrine disruptor's are found in our streams, lakes and oceans as a hormone acting pollutant where in these same water ways scientist are finding fish with both sets of genitalia. So while the FDA says go head..as someone who is concerned about my own health and the health of my family -I say whoa!
The FDA advice is seemingly all about something other than health.
The market place will change when consumers advocate for them selves and do not support companies/products that put our health at risk.

Bill Couzens Founder, Less Cancer

[research]

Stainless Steel RUINS the taste of water.

[asus389]

I'm hardly surprised with this contradiction is "research" on BPA. The FDA clearly doesn't apply the precautionary principle in many circumstances.

One of the best example of this is that the FDA still refuses to ban the use of mercury containing "amalgam" dental fillings, despite clear evidence that they leak mercury over time and the indesputable fact that A) there have been suitable replacements available for over 20 years, and B) mercury is a *known* toxin, not just suspected.

[lollo3]

Sloan,
you're the best!
great advice

[jened]

can someone tell me about the safety of the bottles that used the plastic liners? We used that kind of system when I was unable to breast feed by the fourth month with my first child. I only ever hear about the plastic bottles, not the plastic liners... thanks.

[Wilburrr]

The plastic liners that we used with our kids (now grown) were polyethylene: not (yet) implicated in the BPA problem.