BPA in plastic food containers – is it safe?
BPA – What is it?
Over the past few weeks in preparation for a webinar with Fitness Expert Tommy Europe, I started reading about Bisphenol-A, or BPA – a chemical used to produce plastics and resins such as those in water bottles and the coatings of cans.
2008 Report from The National Toxicology Program (NTP) says we need to limit our exposure to BPA
When I first started researching BPA, I came across the report released in 2008 from The National Toxicology Program (NTP). In the report, the scientists expressed concern over exposure to BPA. They concluded that there was some concern for adverse effects on the brain, behaviour and prostate gland in fetuses, infants and children. As a result, we were advised to limit BPA when possible.
I ran to my cupboards, pulling everything plastic…
Now although I had read about BPA in the past and knew it wasn`t great, after reading this report, I immediately ran to my cupboards and tossed anything plastic, particularly if it had the recycling code #3 or #7 (these suggest BPA) and replaced them with glass containers.
But I kept researching BPA, and the latest studies say it isn’t as bad as originally thought
I continued researching BPA and since the NTP report in 2008, the FDA has performed more research on BPA and reviewed hundreds of studies. It turns out that the original studies actually overestimated the amount of BPA we are exposed to. They have said that the scientific evidence at this time does not suggest that the very low levels of human exposure to BPA through the diet are unsafe.
- Exposure to BPA in human infants is from 84 to 92% less than previously estimated
Health Canada is also in agreement with this
- Dietary intake estimations of BPA for both the general population and infants were updated using more recent food occurrence data sets, including results from the Total Diet Study. The updated dietary exposure assessments are lower than those estimated in the assessment of August 2008. Therefore, based on the overall weight of evidence, the findings of the previous assessment remain unchanged and Health Canada’s Food Directorate continues to conclude that current dietary exposure to BPA through food packaging uses is not expected to pose a health risk to the general population, including newborns and young children. This conclusion is consistent with those of other food regulatory agencies in other countries, including notably the United States, the European Union and Japan.
So, with this new information, should you toss your plastics anyway?
In my opinion, I am definitely relieved to hear that our exposure to BPA is not as significant as previously thought, BUT you can’t disregard the fact that it is linked to health concerns and considering it is something that can be easily limited in your diet, why not just limit it?
If you want to limit your exposure to BPA here are 5 things you can do today:
1. Use glass containers for storing food
2. When you buy plastics, look for the term BPA free
3. Look for canned foods that are BPA free. One brand is EDEN foods
4. If buying bottled water, Dasani bottles are BPA free
5. For wrapping foods, use parchment paper. If using plastic wrap, look for the brand Glad plastic wrap and Saran wrap. They are BPA free.
Links
Health Canada
http://www.hc-sc.gc.ca/fn-an/securit/packag-emball/bpa/bpa_hra-ers-2012-09-eng.php
National institute of Environmental Health Sciences
http://www.niehs.nih.gov/health/topics/agents/sya-bpa/
FDA
http://www.fda.gov/ForConsumers/ConsumerUpdates/ucm297954.htm
