It's a chemical that readers here are typically particularly vulnerable to... given the nature of their chronic conditions.
Rather than get all wordy, I'll let this video speak for itself:
Description of above video as per YouTube: Airing Date Aug.18, 2008 - Lou Dobbs Tonight: FDA Failing You: Govt Says BPA IS Good For You
News links:
Pollution. It's in you. Brought to you by toxic nation.
Plastic bottle ban?
Common Dreams.org News Center: Canada Moves Toward BPA Ban; Wal-Mart Will Pull All BPA-Laced Items
Lawmakers introduce BPA ban
Wikipedia entry on BPA:
Bisphenol A
Related link:
Thursday, October 30, 2008 Endometriosis Blog: BPA Controversy Continues As FDA Disputes Scientific Findings (UPDATED)
This article was posted by Jeanne via "Jeanne's Endo Blog" at www.endendoat.blogspot.com.
8 comments:
This is another example of the power of money overshadowing the moral responsibility our government officials have toward our protection.
Thanks for this pot Jeanne!!!
Mckay k,
You're right. I'm afraid that the power of money is absolutely connected to issues like this where a government agency acknowledges there is a danger... and then later back-peddles and claims there is not enough evidence to act.
It's sad!
Whether we're talking about the companies who make BPA, the companies who peddle pesticides, or the companies who manufacture plastic bottles and all sorts of plastic products... the bottom line is that companies are choosing to put profit over people's health and above what is best for the planet.
Jeanne
Yes, ban BPA!!! At long last.
Luckily I found a wonderful water bottle for Kelly, of a non-leaching plastic.
Jannie,
Doesn't it boggle your mind that BPA is still in use in the US?
What kind of water bottle did you find for Kelly? How did you determine that it's non-leaching? Is it marketed that way? Just curious...
I know bottles with recycle number 7 are supposed to be off limits but I'm not sure what the "safest" number is.
Is there a completely "non leaching" plastic??
I'm reading stuff about glass bottles. An environmental illness doctor (MD) that I used to see was adamant about glass bottles only for water. She didn't think any plastic bottles are OK.
I can't afford to buy Mountain Spring water in glass bottles. If I re-use a glass bottle like that but I'm refilling it with bottled water from a plastic jug, then I defeat the purpose of using glass.
My tap water is way off limits.
So I reluctantly drink the bottled water from plastic gallons even though I know it may not be "perfect". Even if I drink the water from a glass, it has been sitting in that plastic gallon container. :(
I just joined an interesting Facebook group about plastics. I think it's called "Fake Plastic Fish". If you look at my Facebook profile, you'll see it.
Jeanne
I'm not disagreeing that it needs to come off the market, I have believed it needs to since I first heard about it... but I'm not sure how easy it would be to get it off the market FAST! Now... I still think it needs to be phased out ASAP, but I think that it's going to take time unfortunately. I for one, am trying to cut it out of my husbands and my lives as much as possible... and hopefully it'll be out of everyone's soon.
Thanks for sharing!!
Great post. I watched half of the video-but my computer was having problems with buffering it so it was taking forever and pausing every other second, but I get the gist of it.
I've been wondering why all of a sudden you're even hearing about BPA when it's been in things forever.
I have noticed the Moms that I nanny for and that my friends nanny for all switching to glass or BPA free plastic bottles and sippy cups.
So scary.
Alicia,
Thank you. I'm sorry the video didn't work properly.
I think a lot of it is simple awareness. I first heard of BPA a few years back (before the media started talking about it).
Over the years, more and more people are talking about it.
This generates more awareness.
This puts pressure on companies to make safer alternatives.
The more noise we make the better!
It's great that moms you know are hearing about BPA and making the switch.
The more people switch to safer alternatives the less companies will keep producing the BPA products!!
BPA is in lots of things besides baby bottles. Sports-drink bottles, canned goods liners and many other plastic items also have BPA.
I wish you could have seen the whole video. It showed other examples of BPA-containing products.
It truly is scary.
Jeanne
J,
It won't happen overnight but I think it might happen faster than people might think if a few factors were in play:
1) The public awareness is key. The more the public knows, the more noise they will make about it.
2) The more noise the public makes about it, the more legislators will work on regulating the oversight of the phase-out.
3) Getting appropriate legislation in place is key for moving forward with a phase out of BPA.
Clearly with the abundance of BPA-containing products, this problem won't disappear overnight. At the same time, it may happen quicker than many might expect IF the laws are their to back it up.
It doesn't sound like we can leave it in the hands of the FDA! If that means pushing it through Congress, I think that should happen.
One thing that stood out to me is that once Canada cracked down on BPA, large chains like Walmart started pulling products from shelves just like any other recalled product: immediately.
As the one link I included said (excerpt here), "we applaud Canada's decisive action to reduce babies' exposure to bisphenol A through restrictions on polycarbonate bottles and infant formula containers," said EWG Executive Director Richard Wiles. "The rapid response by major retailers like Walmart and Nalgene shows that retailers can and should take immediate action to provide parents with safer products. At the same time, we call on the U.S. government to provide the public with the same protections as our northern neighbors."
It sounds to me like swift action could be taken in the US -- IF legislation will back it up and IF consumers stop buying BPA products whenever possible.
Hitting these massive corporations (that market BPA) in their pocketbooks is key. Between that and any action Congress takes, I believe great strides could be made within a reasonable timeframe.
Consumers are already making the switch to safer alternatives.
Rather than waste money fighting the laws aiming to protect consumers, wouldn't it be nice if current BPA manufacturers directed those funds/energies for research and development on the safer alternatives?
It may not be as FAST as we want but the FDA has been singing the same tune for decades. Now that the public is becoming sensitized to the problem, it will be harder and harder for BPA manufacturers & legislators to "look the other way" about the dangers of BPA.
Anything on this wide a scale clearly needs a phase-out plan of some sort (i.e. people aren't just going to ditch all of their CDs tomorrow).
I think the reason for the emphasis on baby bottles in particular is that babies are way more vulnerable to these toxins than healthy adults.
Also, heating the plastic (and with heated formula in the bottles) increases the chemicals' ability to leach into the food/drink.
In addition, there are already BPA-free options available for baby bottles (glass or otherwise).
So there are products choices coming about now.
This will put pressure on BPA manufacturers --- hurting their profits by having people switching to non-BPA items as they become more available--- in their pockets.
This awarenness is a good thing! These are all steps that will get us closer to finding safer alternatives so that BPA can be phased out.
It won't get better overnight but if enough people speak up, it will matter. (I had signed a petition regarding BPA months ago on another blog).
It's great that you are trying to avoid BPA!
Yes, hopefully it'll be out of everyone's lives soon.
Jeanne
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