There's Bisphenol A Lurking in your Cans

The latest news on BPA is that many of these cans leach BPA into food - particularly those that have been heated with the product inside, to kill bacteria in food. It appears to be of particular concern for children because so many canned products are used for and by kids. There's been an analysis done on some canned products - you can see the list here.

The heating process is what drives particles of BPA into food. Testing was done after food was emptied, cans rinsed several times, and then filled with water. It showed up in the water after being heated, and to different degrees depending on the product.

A couple of months ago I contacted several canned food companies, Avon, Danone, and one other. I heard back from the first two. My question was, "is there BPA in the linings of the cans used for your product?" The answer I received from Danone was that their cans did not contain BPA. The company responsible for AVON canned peas and carrots replied that "there is no Bisphenol A used in our canned products". But on the CTV list of products used for the study, Del Monte's canned peas and carrots is listed there as one which leaches it into food. A third company did not respond at all.

The emphasis on the news items is for children because BPA has a cumulative effect. The chemical mimics the hormone estrogen and BPA exposure has been linked to a predisposition to prostate and breast cancer, as well as reproductive problems. The Globe also has an article on it from yesterday. We all likely have some level of Bisphenol A in our bodies. The good news is that not all cans have BPA in them at all. Also, pop cans are not so potentially dangerous since "soft drinks create such a harsh environment that microbes can't survive in them; as a result, while pop cans are also lined with a BPA-containing resin, heat sterilization isn't required." (Globe).

For more information here's a list of previous posts on BPA.

Bisphenol A Dangers were Known before 2003

* Update - Jan. 22. This issue has been broadcast on CBC's Here & Now Monday & Tuesday. It is good to see it becoming more public knowledge. Evening news broadcasts could easily devote a section of their hour long formats to health news/consumer alerts or health education.

You really have to question all plastics, and can liners, or avoid them as much as possible. Check the number at the bottom of bottles and avoid # 7 bottles for sure!

Even five years ago, there were already 40 studies that polycarbonate plastics containing Bisphenol A (BHA) were dangerous. In 2003, it was known that exposure to low amounts of BHA caused genetic defects in mice. In fact, in a major study by Dr. Patricia Hunt & colleagues, mice drank from old baby bottles, that leached (BPA) into their systems. Damage occurred in the egg cells of female mice. Hunt explained, "so when the cells divide, their chromosomes don't line up...In humans, this results in spontaneous abortion, birth defects, or mental retardation."

Other experts were quoted in the same article mentioned above. Biologist Frederick S. von Saal has studied BPA for many years, and had this to add:

In a recent study, fetal umbilical blood shows higher BPA levels than we generated in mice. Human exposure levels are already high. The horrifying thing is that it looks as though these effects in the Hunt study happen at lower doses than what is actually found in human fetal blood - umbilical cord blood.

What about other plastic compounds? Another plastic compound called Antimony, used in PET bottles, has been and is being studied for its potential hazardous effects. How many others are unsafe, and are years aways from garnering the danger status of BPA?

There are food containers of every shape and size that millions use all their lives. Bisphenol A, and any other plastic compound may very well have contributed to a variety of health problems, including prostate enlargement and cancer, and breast cancer because it has been seeping into food and liquid.

The bottling industry has carried out their own studies, and guess what, they have not found any harmful effects from BPA, despite 90% of 150 independent studies which says otherwise. I guess that unless you want to be fired, industry sponsored research designs will have predictable outcomes.

Previous Bisphenol A posts

Food: What You Don't Know Will Hurt You

The following will make you reconsider using plastic containers and canned food, and products with high sodium levels. In recent days there are two significant news stories concerning this.

Information on a chemical called bisphenol A has the potential to turn the plastics and canning industry upside down.

Evidence shows that bisphenol A, a dangerous chemical used in plastics and cans, leaches into our bodies and has been linked to breast and prostate cancers, among other ailments.

For years, we've also heard about salt being associated with high blood pressure, and now there is more scientific information about unhealthy high levels of sodium in food already. But you can reduce the amounts by reading the labels. You can avoid products that have more than 20% of the daily recommended allowable amount of sodium.

Over the weekend the Globe had an extensive piece on the controversy surrounding bisphenol A. Here is a summary of key pieces of information taken from that article:

Part I - Bisphenol A
This is a toxin in plastics and cans that leaches into food or liquid and is ingested by practically all of us. Scientists and environmentalists contend that bisphenol A is one of the scariest manufactured substances in use.

Here are some medical problems that low amounts of bisphenol A have been suspected to be associated with: the early onset of puberty, declining sperm counts, and the huge increase in breast and prostate cancer, among other ailments.

Bisphenol A is used to make the resins that line most tin cans, dental sealants, car parts, microwaveable plastics, sports helmets and CDs. Government scientists classified bisphenol A as "inherently toxic."

Dr. Patricia Hunt, a Washington State University geneticist, said she would "love to see it banned from the face of the earth." She began ditching her bisphenol-A-containing products after discovering that mere traces of the chemical were able to scramble the eggs of her lab mice. In humans, similar damage would lead to miscarriages and birth defects, such as Down syndrome. "I thought, 'Oh my God,' I'm going to throw out every piece of plastic in my kitchen."

About 90 per cent of studies by independent researchers over the past decade, numbering about 150, have found adverse effects, ranging from enlarged prostates to abnormal breast tissue growth.

Not too surprisingly researchers for companies that use bisphenol A in their products failed to find evidence of adverse effects. A further assessment will take place next month and thus put more pressure on companies to prove that it is not harmful.

Bisphenol A has been used in increasing amounts since the 1950s in food and beverage containers because it doesn't impart a plastic-like taste, although traces leach out. Plastics that use it are often identified by an industry triangle symbol and the number seven.
...
You will probably hear much more about this toxin in the months and years ahead. This story has the potential to be as huge as the cancer causing nicotine in tobacco, or the health risks of trans fats in food.

More than one scientist involved in testing this chemical have given up using canned food and plastics. Manufacturers of plastics and cans are certainly threatened by this and may be forced to radically change how they produce their products. Isn't it so coincidental that their research finds no harmful relationship between bisphenol A and health while about 90% of independent and academic research over the last decade have found harmful effects?

Imagine, scientific researchers being paid to withhold important information from the public, surprise surprise (think nicotine and trans fats). Hopefully if and when this news item broadens, people will question what other suspicious ingredients are in food that have the potential to harm us. There are currently 200 substances that Environment Canada and Health Canada has determined to be possibly dangerous and in need of thorough safety assessments.

Related Links
On the Trail of Water Bottle Toxins

New Findings Make the Case for Bisphenol A Ban

Part II - Salt
Many of the food products we eat already have a high level of salt in them, more than the daily recommended allowance. According to Statistic Canada people consume far too much salt. The maximum upper level allowable doze for people 14 and older is 2,300 mg a day. However, the average for all Canadians was 3,092 mg of sodium a day -- one-third more than the maximum.

When you exceed the recommended levels of salt you risk problems associated with hypertension (high blood pressure). If you went from high levels of sodium and drop down to the recommended levels, research shows that you should be able to drop your blood pressure possibly a 15 to 20 per cent reduction of your risk of stroke.

Kevin Willis of the Canadian Stroke Network warned that even if you were to reduce your own use of salt and cut out salty snacks, that wouldn't necessarily get the levels down to normal. This is because salt is added to so many of the food products we consume.

He suggested avoiding food products that provide more than 20 per cent of the daily value of recommended sodium. A good example of this is packaged shaved turkey or ham. I will be cutting out this for my sandwiches as it has 22% of the daily recommended level of sodium.

These are only two substances that are making a splash in the news right now, but how many other substances are in everyday foods that are harmful or potentially detrimental to our health? It causes one to think, "Has there been a cover up of key information by plastics and can manufacturers?" or "Should nutrition charts and packaging be more detailed, or provide warnings about the risks of digesting certain levels of salt or other components of food products?"

As was suggested by Kevin Willis, the food industry and government should work together to get the level of sodium down in foods "an across-the-board cut in sodium in our food supply".

That would make sense and reduce peoples' risk of problems of hypertension. Question what's in your food, your plastic containers and cans of food because it could be causing you serious health problems.