There is still a debate over whether Bisphenol-A (BPA) is truly as hazardous as some studies are leading us to believe, but the fact that it mimics naturally occurring estrogen in the body is enough to make me wonder. Better safe than sorry.
Exposure to BPA in the womb raises the risks of cancers, affects fertility and can contribute to childhood behavioral problems.
Plastic water and baby bottles are what we consider to be the usual culprits however, BPA is found in soda/pop can and most canned food liners, even in resin lined vats, resulting to BPA in wine.
Better check your plastics. Here is a plastics “refresher”.
There are seven classes of plastics used in packaging applications. Type 7 is the catch-all “other” class, and some type 7 plastics, such as polycarbonate (sometimes identified with the letters “PC” near the recycling symbol) and epoxy resins, are made from bisphenol A monomer. When such plastics are exposed to hot liquids, bisphenol A leaches out 55 times faster than it does under normal conditions, at up to 32 ng/hour. Type 3 (PVC) can also contain bisphenol A as antioxidant in plasticizers. Types 1 (PET), 2 (HDPE), 4 (LDPE), 5 (polypropylene), and 6 (polystyrene) do not use bisphenol A during polymerization or package forming.
Great Tips from the Green Guide to avoid BPA.
1. If you already own polycarbonate bottles, including the Nalgene bottles popular on college campuses, labeled #7 on the bottom, wash them by hand with mild dishwashing soap, not in the dishwasher, to avoid degrading the plastic and increasing leaching of BPA (see “Picnic Perfect Plastics”).
2. Even plastic does not last forever. Look for cracks or cloudiness on your reusable clear plastic bottles. See The Green Guide’s survey, “A Nalgene Bottle Poll.”
3. Use glass baby bottles or plastic bag inserts, which are made of polyethyelene, or switch to polypropylene bottles that are labeled #5 and come in colors or are milky rather than clear.
4. Choose soups, milk and soy milk packaged in cardboard “brick” cartons, by Tetra Pak and SIG Combibloc, which are made of safer layers of aluminum and polyethylene (#2) and also recyclable.
5. Choose canned foods from makers who don’t use BPA, such as Eden Foods (www.edenfoods.com), which sells certified organic canned beans and other foods.
6. Eat fresh foods in season and save the canned foods for convenience or emergencies. The exception is some canned fruit such as that found in smaller fruit-cocktail cans, which do not require a liner, according to the Can Manufacturers Institute.
7. Buy or can your own fruits and vegetables in safe glass jars.
8. Some wines have been found to contain up to six times the BPA of canned foods. While most wines probably don’t, it’s another good reason to drink in moderation.
