How to Avoid a Controversial Plastics Chemical

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How to Avoid a Controversial Plastics Chemical

 

_http://health.usnews.com/usnews/health/articles/070808/8bisphenola.htm_

(http://health.usnews.com/usnews/health/articles/070808/8bisphenola.htm)

By Adam Voiland

Posted 8/8/07

Scientists aren't in full agreement about whether the chemical known as

bisphenol A, which is used in the production of certain plastics and can leach

into food and drink, poses health hazards. Today, an expert panel organized by

the National Institutes of Health concluded that the hormone-mimicking

chemical poses minimal health risks overall. But a statement made last week by

38

independent scientists warned of a wide range of adverse health effects.

For people who want to play it safe and minimize their exposure to the

controversial chemical, experts have some tips:

- Avoid storing food or beverages in polycarbonate plastic, which is often

used to make baby bottles and " sippy " cups, 5-gallon water cooler jugs, and

hard, transparent water bottles, among other products.

- And avoid canned goods, since the linings of metal cans often contain

bisphenol A.

- For people who continue to use polycarbonate food and drink containers,

not heating them should also reduce exposure, says Frederick vom Saal of the

University of Missouri, who is a vocal critic of bisphenol A. The acidity of a

container's contents and the age and condition of the polycarbonate can also

affect how much of the chemical leaches into food or drink, he adds.

Alternatives to polycarbonate include polyethylene and polypropylene

plastics, as well as glass. Both alternative plastics are usually identifiable

by

recycling code, a number that should appear inside a triangular symbol on each

plastic container. The number 2 marks polyethylene and the number 5,

polypropylene, vom Saal says. Polycarbonate doesn't have a unique recycling

code, but

it tends to be assigned the code 7, a category for miscellaneous plastics.

Various online resources—for examples, see _here_

(http://www.thegreenguide.com/reports/product.mhtml?id=44 & sec=3)

_http://www.thegreenguide.com/products/Kitchen/Plastic_Containers_

(http://www.thegreenguide.com/products/Kitchen/Plastic_Containers) and _here_

(http://zrecs.blogspot.com/2007/05/sippy-cup-showdown-safer-bpa-free-sippy.html)

—list products said to be bisphenol A free.

Metal cans, according to studies, are a significant source of human exposure

to bisphenol A. And finding alternatives isn't simple. The most reliable way

to avoid bisphenol A from cans is to avoid using them at all, according to

vom Saal. " The breakdown of the plastic lining of cans, or any [bisphenol

A]-based product, is greatly accelerated by acidic substances or alcohol, " he

says. For many canned products, there are fresh or frozen alternatives, as well

as products that come packaged in glass.

Trade groups such as the American Chemistry Council and the Can

Manufacturers Institute stand behind the safety of polycarbonate. Nevertheless,

some

manufacturers are seeking alternatives, and a few are actively capitalizing on

consumers' concern over bisphenol A. _Born Free_ (http://www.newbornfree.com/)

touts its plastic baby products, including sippy cups, as being free of the

chemical. And Valspar, one of the largest makers of plastic coatings, has

been developing bisphenol A-free coatings for cans.

Eden Foods, a Clinton, Mich.-based natural-foods company, sells beans and

tomato products in bisphenol A-free cans. The company switched in 1999 when its

officers first learned of concerns about bisphenol A, according to

spokeswoman Tonya _Martin_

(http://usnews.healthline.com/multumcontent/multivitamin-with-iron?utm_medium=us\

news & utm_campaign=article & utm_source=hlinks & utm_term=Martin

) . The manufacturing partner that provides its cans, she says, seemed

" taken aback " when Eden first requested a bisphenol A-free product; now it

provides Eden with custom-made cans lined with an alternative material. The

catch:

That material costs 14 percent more and can't be used with the tomato

products, which are acidic enough to corrode the lining and limit shelf life.

As a

result, Eden's canned tomatoes still contain trace amounts of bisphenol A,

Martin says.

Whether such traces pose a risk to people remains unclear. The NIH-organized

expert panel that concluded its meeting today in Washington registered some

concern about bisphenol A's possible neurological and behavioral effects,

particularly in children and developing fetuses. Its chair, Roger Chapin of

pharmaceutical giant Pfizer Inc., acknowledged that concerned people may want

to

apply a " precautionary principle " and take steps to avoid the chemical. But

he and the panel's other members, who reviewed hundreds of relevant studies,

said the chemical's health risks appear to be " minimal " overall. And many

regulatory agencies and numerous industry-sponsored studies say there's no

significant cause for worry.

Other experts remain unwilling to let the chemical off the hook. There's

enough evidence from animal studies to warrant concern, especially for women

who

are pregnant or attempting to conceive, they say. " The definitive study may

not be possible, " says Hugh Taylor, chief of the division of reproductive

endocrinology and _infertility_

(http://usnews.healthline.com/adamcontent/infertility?utm_medium=usnews & utm_camp\

aign=article & utm_source=hlinks & utm_term=infertil

ity) at Yale University School of Medicine. " Why not protect ourselves and

the next generation from this threat? "