Concern Over Canned Foods: Tests Find Wide Range of Bisphenol A in Soups, Juice, And Tuna
Posted Nov 20 2009 10:04pm
The chemical Bisphenol A, which has been used for years in clear plastic bottles and food-can liners, has been restricted in Canada and some U.S. states and municipalities because of potential health effects. The Food and Drug Administration will soon decide what it considers a safe level of exposure to Bisphenol A (BPA), which some studies have linked to reproductive abnormalities and a heightened risk of breast and prostate cancers, diabetes, and heart disease.
Now Consumer Reports’ latest tests of canned foods, including soups, juice, tuna, and green beans, have found that almost all of the 19 name-brand foods we tested contain some BPA. The canned organic foods we tested did not always have lower BPA levels than nonorganic brands of similar foods analyzed. We even found the chemical in some products in cans that were labeled “BPA-free.”
Bisphenol A is associated mostly with plastic. The plastic that most commonly has Bisphenol A are plastics with recycling codes #7 and #3. Also be sure to check the plastic water bottles and reusable water bottles. Mothers using plastic bottles, make sure you check what number you're using. If you find #7 or #3 switch to glass immediately.
A review of recent studies shows BPA is implicated in some very common diseases such as:
Breast Cancer
A 2008 scientific review has concluded that "perinatal exposure to low doses of BPA, alters breast development and increases breast cancer risk".[5] Another 2008 review concluded that " animal experiments and epidemiological data strengthen the hypothesis that fetal exposure to xenooestrogens may be an underlying cause of the increased incidence of breast cancer observed over the last 50 years". A 2009 scientific review, funded by the "Breast Cancer Fund", has recommended "a federal ban on the manufacture, distribution and sale of consumer products containing bisphenol A".
Neurological Complications
A panel convened by the U.S. National Institutes of Health determined that there was "some concern" about BPA's effects on fetal and infant brain development and behavior.[6] A 2008 report by the U.S. National Toxicology Program (NTP) later agreed with the panel, expressing "some concern for effects on the brain".
A 2008 study by the Yale School of Medicine demonstrated that adverse neurological effects occur in non-human primates regularly exposed to bisphenol A at levels equal to the United States Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA) maximum safe dose of 50 µg/kg/day.[7] This research found a connection between BPA and interference with brain cell connections vital to memory, learning and mood.
So How Do You Limit Your Exposure To BPA?
The best place to start with reduction is to choose fresh food whenever possible. Another way to limit exposure is to use glass containers when heating food in microwave ovens. My wife and I eliminated our microwave over a year ago. We no longer heat or cook anything in a microwave oven. Heating any plastics has the potential to release BPA into your food.
Poor health is not a single, cataclysmic event. We do not become unhealthy, overweight or sick overnight. Poor health is the inevitable result of an accumulation of poor thinking and poor choices. TheNewWellness.com is here to help make you aware of things that can affect your health that you may not be aware of. If you liked this article please leave a comment or email this to your friends.
[1] Gore, Andrea C. (June 8, 2007). Endocrine-Disrupting Chemicals: From Basic Research to Clinical Practice. Contemporary Endocrinology. Humana Press. ISBN 978-1588298300.
[2] Draft Screening Assessment for The Challenge Phenol, 4,4' -(1-methylethylidene)bis- (Bisphenol A)Chemical Abstracts Service Registry Number 80-05-7
[3] "Public Health Advisory Regarding Bisphenol A (BPA)". Commonwealth of Massachusetts.
[4] Elobeid, M.; Allison, D. (Oct 2008). "Putative environmental-endocrine disruptors and obesity: a review". Current opinion in endocrinology, diabetes, and obesity 15 (5): 403–408.
[5] Brisken, C. (2008). "Endocrine Disruptors and Breast Cancer". CHIMIA International Journal for Chemistry 62: 406–409
[6] National Toxicology Program, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (2007-11-26)
[7] Leranth C, Hajszan T, Szigeti-Buck K, Bober J, Maclusky NJ (September 2008). "Bisphenol A prevents the synaptogenic response to estradiol in hippocampus and prefrontal cortex of ovariectomized nonhuman primates". Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A. 105: 14187
The chemical Bisphenol A, which has been used for years in clear plastic bottles and food-can liners, has been restricted in Canada and some U.S. states and municipalities because of potential health effects. The Food and Drug Administration will soon decide what it considers a safe level of exposure to Bisphenol A (BPA), which some studies have linked to reproductive abnormalities and a heightened risk of breast and prostate cancers, diabetes, and heart disease.
Now Consumer Reports’ latest tests of canned foods, including soups, juice, tuna, and green beans, have found that almost all of the 19 name-brand foods we tested contain some BPA. The canned organic foods we tested did not always have lower BPA levels than nonorganic brands of similar foods analyzed. We even found the chemical in some products in cans that were labeled “BPA-free.”
Source: Consumers Reports
Dr. WegmannDr. Michael Wegmann's Thoughts:
Bisphenol A is associated mostly with plastic. The plastic that most commonly has Bisphenol A are plastics with recycling codes #7 and #3. Also be sure to check the plastic water bottles and reusable water bottles. Mothers using plastic bottles, make sure you check what number you're using. If you find #7 or #3 switch to glass immediately.
A review of recent studies shows BPA is implicated in some very common diseases such as:
Breast Cancer
A 2008 scientific review has concluded that "perinatal exposure to low doses of BPA, alters breast development and increases breast cancer risk".[5] Another 2008 review concluded that " animal experiments and epidemiological data strengthen the hypothesis that fetal exposure to xenooestrogens may be an underlying cause of the increased incidence of breast cancer observed over the last 50 years". A 2009 scientific review, funded by the "Breast Cancer Fund", has recommended "a federal ban on the manufacture, distribution and sale of consumer products containing bisphenol A".
Neurological Complications
A panel convened by the U.S. National Institutes of Health determined that there was "some concern" about BPA's effects on fetal and infant brain development and behavior.[6] A 2008 report by the U.S. National Toxicology Program (NTP) later agreed with the panel, expressing "some concern for effects on the brain".
A 2008 study by the Yale School of Medicine demonstrated that adverse neurological effects occur in non-human primates regularly exposed to bisphenol A at levels equal to the United States Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA) maximum safe dose of 50 µg/kg/day.[7] This research found a connection between BPA and interference with brain cell connections vital to memory, learning and mood.
So How Do You Limit Your Exposure To BPA?
The best place to start with reduction is to choose fresh food whenever possible. Another way to limit exposure is to use glass containers when heating food in microwave ovens. My wife and I eliminated our microwave over a year ago. We no longer heat or cook anything in a microwave oven. Heating any plastics has the potential to release BPA into your food.
Poor health is not a single, cataclysmic event. We do not become unhealthy, overweight or sick overnight. Poor health is the inevitable result of an accumulation of poor thinking and poor choices. TheNewWellness.com is here to help make you aware of things that can affect your health that you may not be aware of. If you liked this article please leave a comment or email this to your friends.
[1] Gore, Andrea C. (June 8, 2007). Endocrine-Disrupting Chemicals: From Basic Research to Clinical Practice. Contemporary Endocrinology. Humana Press. ISBN 978-1588298300.
[2] Draft Screening Assessment for The Challenge Phenol, 4,4' -(1-methylethylidene)bis- (Bisphenol A)Chemical Abstracts Service Registry Number 80-05-7
[3] "Public Health Advisory Regarding Bisphenol A (BPA)". Commonwealth of Massachusetts.
[4] Elobeid, M.; Allison, D. (Oct 2008). "Putative environmental-endocrine disruptors and obesity: a review". Current opinion in endocrinology, diabetes, and obesity 15 (5): 403–408.
[5] Brisken, C. (2008). "Endocrine Disruptors and Breast Cancer". CHIMIA International Journal for Chemistry 62: 406–409
[6] National Toxicology Program, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (2007-11-26)
[7] Leranth C, Hajszan T, Szigeti-Buck K, Bober J, Maclusky NJ (September 2008). "Bisphenol A prevents the synaptogenic response to estradiol in hippocampus and prefrontal cortex of ovariectomized nonhuman primates". Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A. 105: 14187