The first national survey about bisphenol A (BPA) conducted by Statistics Canada has revealed that 91% of Canadians have a body burden of this chemical known to have hormone-like effects. Click here to read in further detail http://www.theglobeandmail.com/life/health/statscan-survey-finds-bpa-present-in-91-per-cent-of-canadians/article1674153/. What does not mean? Honestly, no one knows because “we are the experiment.”
While the average BPA level in Canadians is just over 1 part per billion, it is a 1000 times more than natural estrogen levels in our body. This sampling is the largest done to date in the world. In this survey, Canadian teens were found to carry BPA levels about 30% higher than the rest of the population. That fact appears to make sense because teens eat more food (food is the major source of BPA) relative to their body size than any other population segment. Canadian children had the next highest levels of body burden of BPA. BPA is found in can liners for food and drinks, water-cooler bottles, baby bottles, flatware, as well as dental sealants and composite dental fillings. Cash registers are also a prolific source of BPA.
The chemical industry has called this data “reassuring.” According to U.S. BPA researcher Frederick vom Saal, “The fact that most people have the chemical BPA in their urine suggests they were having regular exposures in the 24 hours to 36 hours before their tests.” The chemical industry maintains that half of the BPA ingested in food is broken down into a harmless chemical without hormonal activity about every 6 hours. However, all would agree, we simply don’t know the long term effects of a population exposed to BPA. Because of the vast numbers of chemicals in our environment, food, and water, and the unknown effects of combination of these chemicals, we have truly become the experiment.
We do know that the possible effects of exposure to BPA include but are not limited to the following:
• reproductive tract changes that may be permanent
• testosterone decreases
• breast and prostate cancer cells predisposed to cancer
• hyperactive behavior
• prostate weight increase.
While Health Canada and the U.S. FDA and EPA fail to take action pending safety tests, it is critical to vote with our pocket books. And, take urgent action urged by ANH-USA for a Citizens Petition to ban BPA in cash register receipts. Click here to learn more https://secure3.convio.net/aahf/site/Advocacy?cmd=display&page=UserAction&id=595. It is alarming that the FDA has failed to take action on a petition by ANH-USA to ban BPA in dental sealants in the mouths of children. Can we afford to potentially sacrifice our children’s health while further safety studies are conducted?
Deborah Ray, MT (ASCP)
a solution is quite simple.
By now most people know what is BPA/bisphenol and where it can be found.
First it was all the plastic food containers, water bottles, and baby bottles.
Now it’s in linings of cans and cardboard containers and receipts – that most people don’t know, but I guess by the end of 2011 most people will know.
Most plastic and bottles manufacturers are removing BPA. But more pressure is needed, not by FDA, but by us the People. How? To be more careful when shopping. Have a list of plastics classification, how to identify them, and to buy food or water only in bottles or containers without bPA.
most important: avoid plastics and cans and processed food. That’s simple.
replace everything plastic at home with stainless steel and glass.
throw away your microwave oven – it’s number one enemy in our homes. There are too many electronics around the house that produce electromagnetic fields. Microwave is not needed, it’s a poison.
Appleton Papers, which makes more than 50 percent of the receipt paper sold in the U.S., stopped using BPA in 2006. After reviewing available science we concluded removing BPA from our thermal products was the responsible thing to do. In doing so, we gave retailers and restaurants a safe, easy and cost-competitive choice. Our BPA-free thermal receipt paper is available globally.
We realize that many of our competitors continue to use BPA despite mounting concerns about its safety. We are actively participating in the EPA’s BPA Alternatives in Thermal Paper Partnership. We hope the remainder of the thermal paper industry moves away from potentially harmful BPA. More information about the partnership is available on the EPA website: http://www.epa.gov/dfe/pubs/projects/bpa/index.htm
For more information about Appleton and our BPA-free thermal paper products, visit http://www.appletonideas.com.
It is alarming that nonprofessionals, who depend on honesty from the products they buy, often find vital information is hidden from them. It is getting more and more difficult to live the simple, wholesome life I had as a child decades ago on a small farm where my parents never embraced DDT or any pectitides and lived largly on their own produce. How I wish for the fresh fruits, vegetables, fresh meat and dairy products they provided for me without any pollution – God’s fresh air and sunshine, no air conditioning, no car, a horse or our feet for transportation.
I must admit, I don’t want to give up indoor plumbing, electricity or central heat and air, or even a car, unless public transportaton was a lot more convenient than it is where I live.