Bisphenol A
I've heard conflicting reports on Bisphenol A (the chemical in many plastics including baby bottles and plastic lining of cans). A couple of years ago there was a report making the rounds on the web warning about buying food stored in plastic with BPA or heating things in the microwave in BPA plastic. The report was supposed to be coming out of Johns Hopkins University and was later reputed to be a hoax. BPA is in the news again and this editorial laid out the facts well, I thought, and is from a reputable source written by researchers at Tufts University. They find that the estrogenic effect of BPA has an association with increased risk of cancer, obsesity, and reduced sperm count (amoung other negative effects).
"Hoax" and links
Oh, thanks for linking up that info, DL. I had a feeling there was something already on here (and in fact I see I already posted about Bisphenol A there)--I looked for this morn, but was looking in the wrong forum.
The hoax stuff--yeah, that has just been a problem for me when I've tried talking about it with some people. I'll raise it as a problem, and then they'll point me to someplace that says--oh yeah, that's just an urban myth. That newsletter from Johns Hopkins was just something making the rounds on the internet, etc.
And frankly, I think most people who do this are eager to believe that it is a hoax 'cause they don't want to deal with changing their lifestyle.
Consider the source of these "hoax" reports...
With any commercial interest I've seen this tactic a lot. The companies find a polarized issue in order to market a product and make a profit. If the company's integrity or their product is challenged, they divert the public attention to the faults of the other group so that the bickering keeps the public occupied while the company milks the public for all they've got. It's the classic "divide and conquer". If too many "activist" organizations "catch on" they go in through avenues the public has all but forgotten - like the FDA "citizen's comment/petition" in order to limit choices and knowledge from the consumer and prevent another uprising.
This is not new news. These are not "new" findings, there are just more studies. Anyway... forgive me for venting some frustration there. Here's some more info on this:
This was mentioned in the plastics forum where I brought up the issue of recycling. There's good information there on how to identify the types of plastic and the proper ways to use plastics to minimize leeching.
(From the American Association for Health Freedom)
BPA is used in thousands of household products, including baby bottles, eyeglasses, dental items, and CDs. It has been detected in nearly all Americans tested. Originally developed as an estrogen replacement, BPA is widely used to line metal cans.
Canada is moving forward with legislation that bans the import, sale and has issued a health warning not to use any product containing BPA if it's heated or warmed.
Until recently, the FDA stood by their position that “FDA-regulated products containing BPA currently on the market are safe and that exposure levels to BPA from food contact materials, including for infants and children, are below those that may cause health effects” (FDA, Alderson Statement to US Senate, 5-14-08). According to AAHF, however, the FDA’s findings are to a large extent based on the chemical industry’s own studies, and ignores numerous independent scientific research findings.
Finally: FDA's own scientific advisory board has challenged claim of safety, saying the agency needs to consider more than two studies.
Of the 258 scientific studies of BPA published to date, an overwhelming majority of them show the chemical is harmful—causing breast cancer, testicular cancer, diabetes, hyperactivity, obesity, low sperm counts, miscarriage, and a host of other reproductive failures in laboratory animals.
Here's some good news:
Congress Moves to Ban BPA from Food and Beverage Containers
Leaders from the House of Representatives and the Senate have just announced legislation to establish a federal ban on bisphenol A in all food and beverage containers. Rep. Edward Markey (D-MA) and Sens. Dianne Feinstein (D-CA) and Chuck Schumer (D-NY) plan to introduce bills that will greatly expand efforts to limit use of the chemical in products for babies and children.
ReformFDA.org has an action alert and petition to support this legislation.
Click here to read and sign.