| Plastic food packaging is lightweight, convenient | | | | BPA had gone up by 69%. (1) |
| and almost unavoidable. So the fact that it might | | | | Not the Usual Toxin |
| be contaminating your food is a cause for | | | | BPA is not a toxin in the usual sense. Asbestos, |
| concern. Can plastic food containers really be a | | | | for instance, has a clear impact on the body and |
| health hazard? | | | | leads to cancer. BPA leached into the body from |
| There's no quick and easy answer to that | | | | plastic food packaging doesn't translate to |
| question. What we do know is that chemical | | | | immediate harm. Instead, it acts like a hormone |
| compounds of plastic are turning up in human | | | | and disrupts the endocrine system. The excess |
| blood levels, so you are being exposed. That's | | | | estrogen activity it causes can lead to higher risk |
| hardly surprising since we live in a plastic world. | | | | of certain cancers, birth defects, diabetes and |
| Most of us start our day by squeezing toothpaste | | | | reduced fertility. (2) |
| from a plastic tube onto a plastic toothbrush. | | | | Because BPA affects the body by mimicking |
| Then we pour cereal into a bowl from a plastic | | | | natural hormones, the results may not show up |
| bag and top it with milk from a plastic jug. After | | | | for years. Research will have to be conducted for |
| working all day on a plastic computer keyboard, | | | | decades before evidence of harm done by plastic |
| we come home and heat up some soup from a | | | | food containers and plastic water bottles is |
| can lined with – yes, plastic. | | | | conclusive. |
| And then there's quenching your thirst from | | | | Canada has decided not to wait that long. It is the |
| plastic water bottles… | | | | first country to officially declare BPA a toxic |
| The Main Ingredient | | | | chemical, which could lead to a ban on |
| Bisphenol-A (BPA) is the primary component of | | | | food-related use in the near future. Other |
| polycarbonate, the hard clear substance used in | | | | countries, including the U.S., have adopted a "wait |
| plastic food packaging. The FDA has declared BPA | | | | and see" approach. (3) |
| safe for use in plastic food containers, but | | | | As I mentioned earlier, it would be very hard to |
| numerous clinical studies are confirming that BPA | | | | eliminate the use of plastic from your life. But if |
| is toxic. It is interesting to note that the FDA has | | | | you want to limit your personal exposure to BPA, |
| been criticized by its own scientific advisory board | | | | there are a few things you can do. |
| for making their decision based on research | | | | - Use water bottles that are labeled BPA-free, or |
| funded by the plastics industry. | | | | go back to glass. |
| A Harvard study released in 2009 was the first | | | | - Don't microwave food in plastic containers – |
| to make a clear connection between drinking | | | | the heat speeds up transfer of BPA into the food. |
| from plastic water bottles containing BPA and an | | | | - Look for soups and milk packaged in cardboard |
| increased level of BPA in the urine. This study | | | | cartons that are lined with alternate materials. |
| came about almost by accident. | | | | - Don't use plastic wrap to store food. |
| Karin Michels, associate professor at the School of | | | | Plastic food packaging has become part of our |
| Public Health and Harvard Medical School, noticed a | | | | way of life. As to whether it stays that way, only |
| lot of her students constantly swigging drinks | | | | time will tell. |
| from plastic water bottles. She warned them that | | | | Remember to consult your physician before |
| they might want to limit their BPA exposure. The | | | | making significant changes to your diet, |
| students wondered just how much BPA they | | | | supplement or exercise regimen. |
| might be getting and decided to find out. | | | | Sources: |
| 77 students switched to drinking cold beverages | | | | 1. Daley, Beth, "Harvard study back bottle |
| from stainless steel bottles for a week to flush | | | | concern, says plastic used leaches bisphenol A," |
| BPA from their systems. During that week, they | | | | The Boston Globe, May 22, 2009 |
| provided baseline urine samples. They then | | | | 2. Horton, Jennifer, "What's BPA and do I really |
| switched back to drinking from BPA bottles for | | | | need a new water bottle?" 3. |
| another week. In the final analysis, urine levels of | | | | |