The Ongoing Debate About Bisphenol A

Written by Greg

The debate about the safety of bisphenol A in consumer products continues to rage. As you may be aware, bisphenol A is a chemical compound that is widely used in plastics and food liners. The last two weeks have seen the emergence of more research papers, both for and against the use of the material. Yesterday, a friend of mine forwarded me this article from Fox News. There is also a recently updated report from the National Toxicology Program, a summary of which can be viewed here. It is worth noting that this report downgrades the level of concern, relative to the initial findings.

In case you missed the earlier post on this subject, bisphenol A is a chemical compound used as a hardening agent in a wide variety of plastics, with over 6 billion pounds produced annually in the United States. It makes plastics rigid while providing impact and chemical resistance. One of the primary target markets for the elimination of bisphenol A is baby bottles, with food liners a close second. Some groups believe it may be responsible altering the sexual development of children, with the worst damage being done to infants. It is known to behave like estrogen when ingested. Most U.S. citizens (>95%) test positive for exposure to bisphenol A, but manufacturers contend that exposure levels are far below those at which harm can occur.

There is a move afoot by a variety of government agencies around the globe to limit the use of bisphenol A in consumer products, but I doubt legislation will be passed anytime soon. In the meantime, some of the big box retailers are taking matters into their own hands. Retailers Wal-Mart and Toys R Us obviously feel the pressure from their customers, and have plans to eliminate bisphenol A-containing baby bottles from store shelves within the next year. Some baby bottle manufacturers are ramping up production of glass bottles to protect themselves from consumer concerns as well.

If you’re interested in limiting your exposure, the easiest approach you can take is to avoid using foods or liquids taken from hard plastic or metal containers. This may not be exactly easy in today’s world. A move to glass baby bottles would be fairly straightforward, but avoiding canned goods reduces the selection of shelf-stable foods. Completely eliminating exposure is probably unrealistic, but those techniques, will greatly reduce your contact with this compound.