Bisphenol A is a compound that is used to coat the inside of almost all food and beverage cans, including soft drinks. It is also used to make plastics, including baby and water bottles and sports equipment. It has been shown to leach into our food and drinks. What may come as a surprise is that it has been suspected of being hazardous since the 1930’s, yet is still found in a multitude of products today.

Increased research has been conducted over the past few years and alarming health concerns have surfaced. BPA has been found to be an endocrine disruptor, meaning that it mimics the action of hormones in your body causing several negative health effects. It has been shown to interfere with fetal and infant brain development, disruption of thyroid functioning, increased prostate cancer susceptibility, heart disease and diabetes. The FDA raised further concerns regarding exposure of fetuses, infants, and young children in a 2010 report.

A few weeks ago, the Washington Post (2/23, Layton) reported that ““Major US foodmakers are quietly investigating how to rid their containers of bisphenol A (BPA), a chemical under scrutiny by federal regulators concerned about links to a range of health problems,” but the companies “are discovering how complicated it is to remove the chemical, which is in the epoxy linings of nearly every metal can on supermarket shelves and leaches into foods such as soup, liquid baby formula and soda.”

In addition, it reported that the “FDA does not know which companies use BPA, how much they use or how it is applied, because manufacturers are not required to disclose that information.“

If you’d like to reduce your exposure to this harmful compound, stay away from food and drinks in metal cans, and plastic bottles (labeled with #3 or #7 on the bottom of the bottle), avoid heating plastic in the microwave or dishwasher, and choose to store food in glass instead.

If you would like to learn more about how food, lifestyle and even cosmetic products can negatively affect your health by disrupting you hormone balance, contact us for a complimentary consultation or join us for our Hormone Health Seminar coming April 5^th in Los Gatos.

Dorothy Lizak

Nutrition & Wellness Specialist

References:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bisphenol_A

photo: thank you: www.recyclethis.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2006/06/tin_can250.jpg&imgrefurl=http://www.recyclethis.co.uk/20060609/how-can-i-reuse-or-recycle-food-cans&usg=__PYfFWjneGXbzTJHuNOoKwcijdP8=&h=197&w=250&sz=24&hl=en&start=37&sig2=qM82gMsGuGbMa6l4J_jKng&itbs=1&tbnid=UyWKqT0hF93ycM:&tbnh=87&tbnw=111&prev=/images%3Fq%3Dtin%2Bcan%26start%3D20%26hl%3Den%26safe%3Dactive%26sa%3DN%26gbv%3D2%26ndsp%3D20%26tbs%3Disch:1&ei=UiKVS8jwO5vMswPb59j8Aw

Tags: heart disease, hormone imbalances, Nutrition coaching Los Gatos, nutrition coaching san francisco, unsafe plastic

This entry was posted on Monday, March 8th, 2010 at 9:23 am and is filed under Hormone Health, Nutrition Tips, Prevention information. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.