Bisphenol A chemical commonly found in canned soup and food storage plastics

http://www.newstarget.com/021969.html

NewsTarget.com printable article
Originally published August 9 2007
Bisphenol A chemical commonly found in canned soup and food storage plastics
by Mike Adams

Before you decide to chew on the cap of your water bottle because you're
nervous, make sure the plastic you are chewing on isn't full of carcinogens
and chemicals -- even though lobbyists for the plastics industry argue that
any traces of the toxic substance bisphenol A are low and therefore,
insubstantial.

Bisphenol A, or BPA, is found most commonly in polycarbonate plastics.
According to the Bisphenol-A.org website, "Bisphenol A is an industrial
chemical used primarily to make polycarbonate plastic and epoxy resins, both
of which are used in countless applications that make our lives easier,
healthier and safer, each and every day."

But the Environmental Working Group states, "BPA is an ingredient in
plastics and the epoxy resins that line food cans. Low doses of BPA lead to
a range of health problems, including birth defects of the male and female
reproductive systems in laboratory animals. Despite the growing evidence of
risk to human health, there are no limits on the amount of BPA allowed in
canned food.

The tests found that pregnant women and infants who eat even a single
serving of some canned foods are exposed to unsafe doses of BPA. Of the
foods [recently tested for BPA contamination] -- which included many of the
canned foods eaten most often by women of childbearing age -- BPA levels
were highest in canned pasta and soup. Canned infant formula also had high
levels. Just one to three servings of food with these BPA levels could
expose a pregnant woman or infant to harmful doses of the chemical."

The Environmental Working Group is a nonprofit organization that uses the
power of information to protect public health and the environment. They
recently completed a study of the toxic chemical and its presence in
name-brand canned goods, finding that 50% of those canned goods contained
bisphenol A. To make matters worse, the FDA states about 20 percent of the
U.S. diet comes from this form of food packaging. Even so, there are no
current government safety standards that regulate how much BPA is allowed in
canned foods. The burden of proof lies with government and lobbyists, who
say the doses found in canned goods and plastics are very low. But what dose
of this toxic chemical is really safe? No one seems to know.


The toxicity of BPA
"BPA reads like a case study of how badly our chemical safety system is
broken," said Jane Houlihan, Vice President for Research at EWG. "We've
known it's toxic for 75 years, it's polluting the bodies of almost all
Americans, but we allow it in our food at levels that leave no margin of
safety for pregnant women and young children."

"Given widespread human exposure to BPA and hundreds of studies showing its
adverse effects, the FDA and EPA must act quickly to revise safe levels for
BPA exposure based on the latest science on the low-dose toxicity of the
chemical," according to the Environmental Working Group.

Fred von Saal is a professor of Biological Sciences at the University of
Missouri, Columbia and speaks frequently on the lecture and seminar circuit.
He is the author of a groundbreaking paper in Environmental Health
Perspective on risk assessment concerning low-dose effects of bisphenol A.

"The idea that this is a strong, durable product is an illusion," von Saal
said. "The chemists have known that the Bisphenol A chemical is constantly
leaching and coming into contact with food or water. It's going to damage
your body.this evidence will ultimately convince federal regulatory agencies
that BPA should be illegal for use in food and beverage containers. It's
only a matter of time."


Chemical industry "scientists" disagree
Of course, there are those who disagree -- mostly people on the payroll of
the plastics industry. "The evidence has been examined by governments and
scientific bodies worldwide. In every case, the weight of evidence supports
the conclusion that bisphenol A is not a risk to human health at the
extremely low levels to which people might be exposed," said Steve Hentges,
spokesman for the American Plastics Council.

The American Plastics Council is a lobbyist for the U.S. plastics
industry -- their main focus is to promote the benefits of plastics,
including plastic products which contain the chemical bisphenol A.

According to the American Plastics Council, products that may contain the
chemical bisphenol A include:

.. hard, clear plastic baby bottles
.. hard, clear, sometimes tinted, plastic water bottles
.. hard, clear plastic bowls, tableware, storage containers
.. liners inside food and drink cans
.. dental sealant to prevent cavities
.. electronic equipment
.. sports safety equipment
.. medical devices
.. pet carriers
.. spray-on flame retardants

There's more to this story, too -- not only is it toxic, it could affect
your child's metabolism.

"Certain environmental substances called endocrine-disrupting chemicals can
change the functioning of a fetus's genes, altering a baby's metabolic
system and predisposing him or her to obesity. This individual could eat the
same thing and exercise the same amount as someone with a normal metabolic
system, but he or she would become obese, while the other person remained
thin. This is a serious problem because obesity puts people at risk for
other problems, including cancer, diabetes, cardiovascular disease and
hypertension," von Saal said.

What's clear today is that BPA is a chemical of justified concern, and
consumers who wish to protect themselves from the detrimental effects of BPA
exposure should limit their exposure to plastics products that come into
contact with their food and beverages.


Action items
.. Never microwave foods in plastic containers. Heating plastics greatly
increases the potential for leaching of chemicals into your food.

.. Avoid drinking beverages out of plastic containers. This includes bottled
water, juice drinks, and others. Drink out of glass or stainless steel.

.. Greatly reduce or eliminate your consumption of canned food products.
Canned foods typically contain BPA due to the lining inside the can.

.. Avoid storing food in plastic containers. Instead, choose Pyrex or class
containers (stainless steel is also acceptable). Also avoid using plastic
sandwich bags or plastic wrap products, wherever possible.

.. Remember that if you are pregnant or nursing, BPA chemicals are passed
through your bloodstream directly to your baby.

On Aug 12, 1:02 am, "Chicken Little" wrote:
http://www.NewsTurd!.com/021969.html

NewsTarget.com printable article
Originally published August 9 2007
Bisphenol A chemical commonly found in canned soup and food storage plastics
by Mike Adams

Before you decide to chew on the cap of your water bottle because you're
nervous, make sure the plastic you are chewing on isn't full of carcinogens
and chemicals -- even though lobbyists for the plastics industry argue that
any traces of the toxic substance bisphenol A are low and therefore,
insubstantial.

Yet another ridiculous variation of "The Sky is Falling!"

http://www.bisphenol-a.org/

and

http://www.bisphenol-a.org/sixty-minutes.html

BISPHENOL-A CONSUMER HEALTH & SAFETY INFORMATION


I. OVERVIEW

Products made with polycarbonate plastic or epoxy resins, both
manufactured from Bisphenol-A (BPA), are widely used by consumers
because they make our lives safer and easier. In the forty plus years
since its first commercial use, BPA's safety has been confirmed by
numerous tests designed to evaluate potential health effects and by
government assessments of those tests.

Use of polycarbonate plastics and epoxy resins in food and beverage
containers is authorized by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration
(FDA), and the European Commission's Scientific Committee on Food has
recently confirmed that food contact products made with BPA are safe
for their intended uses.

In the April 2003 edition of Current Biology, Dr. Patricia Hunt and
colleagues reported finding a chromosomal abnormality in mouse eggs
after exposure to BPA. The research did not examine any potential
effects on reproduction or development in mice, and Dr. Hunt has
acknowledged that the connection between her results and human health
has not been established (Ref. 19, 22). Moreover, as Dr. Hunt stated
in a recent interview, "I think in the case of my study, no regulatory
agency is going to change their guidelines based on the results of one
study, so obviously the way science is done is we report a finding and
someone else repeats it. So we're waiting for that replication." (Ref.
42) Significantly, the study's findings are contradicted by numerous
studies that are used by governments to assess safety, all of which
found no evidence of health effects at levels even remotely close to
what consumers may encounter through normal use of polycarbonate and
epoxy products, including no reproductive or developmental effects.

The FDA has reviewed the Current Biology article and has not altered
any of its safe use determinations, nor has it indicated any intention
to do so. Following publication of the study, George Pauli, Associate
Director for Science and Policy in the FDA's Office of Food Additive
Safety, commented, "We don't have any reason to believe that there's
any effect." (Ref. 41)

Click on the links in the text for detailed information on each of the
following points.

Polycarbonate plastic and epoxy resins - safely used for more than 40
years
Polycarbonate plastic and epoxy resins, made from BPA, have been
safely used in consumer products for more than forty years.
Polycarbonate is often used in place of glass because it is clear,
lightweight, heat-resistant, and shatter-resistant, a significant
safety advantage. Polycarbonate is so tough it is also used as bullet-
resistant glass and is used to make bicycle helmets and other safety
equipment to protect people from injuries. Epoxy resins are inert
materials used as linings in metal cans to protect foods and beverages
from spoilage and other contamination. Click here for more
information.

Extensive testing demonstrates safety of polycarbonate plastic and
epoxy resins
BPA has been extensively researched and tested. Government agencies in
the U.S., Europe and elsewhere have reviewed the research data and
confirm that polycarbonate plastic and epoxy resins may be safely used
in contact with food (Ref. 14, 56). The research demonstrating the
safety of BPA includes internationally accepted tests designed to
examine potential reproductive and developmental effects, upon which
governments rely to assess safety. These tests, examining laboratory
animals over multiple generations and conducted according to
internationally recognized standards, coupled with the assessment of
those tests by government agencies in the U.S., Europe, and Japan,
clearly support the safety of polycarbonate plastics and epoxy resins.
Click here for more information.

Consumer exposure to BPA is extremely low
Typical levels of human exposure to BPA are about 1 million times
below levels that have been demonstrated not to cause adverse effects
in the internationally recognized multi-generation reproductive
toxicity studies. Numerous recent studies that directly measure human
exposure to BPA have demonstrated that exposure to adults and children
is many times lower than the levels tested in the Current Biology
study (Ref. 1, 6, 18, 31, 44, 53, 61, 65). Click here for more
information.

The body rapidly removes BPA
BPA does not accumulate in the body. The very small amounts of BPA
that may be taken into the body are rapidly excreted. The result is
that reproductive organs would have no significant exposure to BPA
and, thus, essentially no opportunity for BPA to cause the effects
reported in the Current Biology study. Click here for more
information.

Governments have not accepted the "low-dose hypothesis"
Governments and independent scientific bodies worldwide have reviewed
the scientific evidence on the potential for BPA to cause health
effects at very low doses. No government body has accepted the so-
called "low-dose hypothesis." Furthermore, no study purporting to show
low-dose effects has been replicated in a second lab, despite repeated
efforts to do so. Before a reported finding can be accepted as
scientifically valid, it is essential to ensure the results can be
reproduced, especially in a separate laboratory. Click here for more
information.

The Current Biology study's authors speculate about effects they did
not examine
Claims of potential human effects go so far beyond the actual findings
of the study that they are scientifically dubious. The study's authors
have speculated about miscarriage and birth defects in humans based on
findings of their preliminary research in mouse eggs. The authors'
speculations are contradicted by numerous internationally accepted
studies that specifically looked for and found no evidence of such
effects at any level remotely close to levels consumers might
encounter (Ref. 12, 39, 54). In fact, Dr. Hunt herself has
acknowledged that, scientifically, a connection between her results
and human health has not been established (Ref. 19, 22). Click here
for more information.


The safety of polycarbonate plastic and epoxy resins, made from BPA,
is supported by extensive tests used to evaluate potential health
effects from BPA. These studies, along with the fact that the FDA
continues to believe polycarbonate plastic and epoxy resins are safe
when used as intended, provide strong reassurance of the safety of
these products. Based on the totality of the research, governments
around the world continue to permit the use of polycarbonate and epoxy
resins in food containers.



II. DETAILED INFORMATION ON THE SAFETY OF BPA

Polycarbonate plastic and epoxy resins - safely used for more than 40
years
Polycarbonate plastic and epoxy resins, made from BPA, have been
safely used in consumer products for more than forty years.

In addition to being clear and tough, polycarbonate has high heat and
electrical resistance. It is used in a variety of everyday products,
including:

eyeglass lenses

bicycle helmets

reusable food and drink containers

construction helmets

consumer electronics

safety goggles

household appliances

medical equipment

cell phones

computers
Epoxy resins have an exceptional combination of toughness, adhesion,
and chemical resistance. Epoxy resins are used in:

linings of food and beverage cans

electrical equipment

adhesives

flooring
Back

Extensive testing confirms safety of polycarbonate plastic and epoxy
resins

Reproductive and developmental testing:

Numerous studies conducted according to internationally recognized
standards and relied upon by governments have looked specifically for
reproductive and developmental health effects. These studies have
consistently found no such effects below, at, and as much as 4,000
times above the exposure levels in the Current Biology study.

The key studies on which experts, government officials and industry
rely for the conclusion that there are no reproductive or
developmental risks from exposure to BPA at levels anywhere near
levels a consumer might encounter include:

A continuous breeding study in mice, conducted by the U.S.
government's National Toxicology Program, showed no effects on
reproduction at a dose approximately 4000 times higher than the
highest dose tested in the Current Biology study (Ref. 39).


A study conducted at the Research Triangle Institute examined parents
and three offspring generations of rats exposed to BPA. No evidence of
developmental or reproductive effects was found at doses anywhere near
levels to which consumers might be exposed (Ref. 54).


A similar two-generation study sponsored by the Japanese Ministry of
Health and Welfare found no developmental or reproductive effects at
any dose tested. This study also included two behavioral tests of
offspring, including a learning test, and found no effect of BPA at
any dose (Ref. 12).

Genetic testing:

BPA has been studied using a standard internationally recognized test
for determining genetic effects - the mouse micronucleus assay. No
such effects were found, even at a dose 20,000 to 100,000 times higher
than the doses tested in the Current Biology study (Ref. 5).

In summary, many of the studies that ordinarily might be conducted in
response to the Current Biology findings had previously been conducted
and do not indicate a reproductive, developmental or genetic risk.

Back


Consumer exposure to BPA is extremely low
A person would have to consume more than 1,300 pounds of food and
beverages in contact with polycarbonate plastic or more than 500
pounds of food and beverages from cans lined with epoxy resins, every
day for a lifetime, to exceed the safe level of BPA set by the U.S.
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

Migration of BPA from polycarbonate plastic and epoxy resins in food
and beverage containers has been shown to be extremely low. Actual
human dietary concentrations are infinitesimal. Studies of
polycarbonate and epoxy resins by government agencies, academia, and
industry have examined the typical ways consumers use polycarbonate
products, including microwaving, washing in a dishwasher, sterilizing,
and long-term storage at a variety of temperatures, and have found
that migration from these uses is generally less than five parts per
billion. Even under conditions that go far beyond normal use,
migration of BPA is well below safe levels. For canned foods,
migration is typically less than 37 parts per billion and is so low as
to be virtually undetectable in canned beverages (Refs. 4, 9, 16, 20,
21, 25, 30, 36, 55).

Back


The body rapidly removes BPA
Studies demonstrate that the very small amounts of BPA that may be
taken into the body do not accumulate and are rapidly excreted. The
metabolism of BPA in humans has been reported in the scientific
literature in two studies that involve human volunteers (Ref. 53, 58).
The results of both studies show that BPA is rapidly converted to a
glucuronide metabolite that is then excreted in urine within hours
after the initial exposure. These results are consistent with the
results of multiple animal studies that also demonstrate that BPA is
rapidly metabolized (Ref. 43, 46, 48, 57). The glucuronide metabolite
of BPA does not have estrogenic activity (Ref. 32). The scientific
evidence shows that humans very efficiently metabolize and excrete
BPA, resulting in no significant exposure of the reproductive organs
to BPA.

Back

Governments have not accepted the "low-dose hypothesis"
Various government and independent scientific bodies worldwide have
reviewed the studies that claim BPA has the potential to cause health
effects at very low doses. No government body has accepted the so-
called "low-dose hypothesis" in general or specifically for BPA.
Notable examples include the U.S. EPA (Ref. 13), Japanese Ministry of
Economy, Trade and Industry (Ref. 23), Japanese Ministry of Health,
Labor and Welfare (Ref. 24), European Commission Scientific Committee
on Food (Ref. 14), and European Commission Scientific Committee on
Toxicity, Ecotoxicity and the Environment (Ref. 15).

In 2000, the U.S. government's National Toxicology Program's (NTP) Low
Dose Peer Review BPA Subpanel reviewed the available scientific data
to evaluate the likelihood of low dose effects and found that the data
did not prove the low-dose hypothesis for BPA. In its review of
studies led by low dose theorist Dr. Frederick vom Saal, the Subpanel
found a variety of problems, including lack of proper documentation
and, for one study, use of a methodology the panel characterized as
"prone to false positive outcomes." Despite a request from the NTP, no
raw data were submitted to support five of Dr. vom Saal's studies, so
those studies could not be evaluated at all by the NTP expert review
group (Ref. 40). In contrast, the Subpanel determined that a number of
large, statistically powerful studies in rats and mice found no
evidence for a low-dose effect of BPA. (The Tyl study, which
demonstrated no low-dose effect after examination of over one million
data points in four generations of laboratory animals across a wide
range of doses, was considered by the NTP Statistics Subpanel as
"arguably the most comprehensive of the studies we evaluated.") A
number of these statistically powerful studies were designed to
replicate in other laboratories the "low-dose" studies, but no low-
dose effects were found (Ref. 40). As the NTP Panel noted,
"Reproducibility of experimental results is an important and necessary
feature of any scientific finding before it can be generally accepted
as valid. ...Perhaps the most important kind of replication is
reproducibility among different laboratories trying to confirm the
findings of another laboratory."

Both before and subsequent to the NTP BPA Subpanel's review, academic,
government and industry researchers have published studies that report
no effects from low doses of BPA (Ref. 7, 8, 12, 54, 2, 3, 10, 11, 17,
26, 27, 28, 29, 33, 34, 35, 37, 38, 45, 47, 49, 50, 51, 52, 59, 60,
62, 63, 64, 66). These include studies in separate laboratories
specifically designed to replicate reported low-dose results (Ref. 3,
7, 8, 52).

In sum, the studies purporting to show low-dose effects were limited
studies on a few laboratory animals, did not use internationally
accepted research protocols and have not been replicated in
independent laboratories. As many governments and scientific bodies
have concluded, the weight of scientific evidence does not support the
validity of the low-dose hypothesis for BPA.

Back

The Current Biology study's authors speculate about effects they did
not examine
The authors of the Current Biology study have speculated about
miscarriage and birth defects, effects that could not be examined in
their research on an early phase of mouse eggs prior to cell division.
The authors did not look for actual effects after cell division.
Authoritative studies, using internationally accepted protocols that
have been validated for the evaluation of potential health effects,
have looked for evidence of effects on fertility (the equivalent of
miscarriage in mice) and increased incidence of birth defects. These
studies found BPA to have no such effects at any level remotely close
to levels consumers might encounter (Ref. 12, 39, 54).

"Jan Drew" wrote in message
. net...
http://www.newstarget.com/021969.html

NewsTarget.com printable article
Originally published August 9 2007
Bisphenol A chemical commonly found in canned soup and food storage
plastics

It's also found in composite "teeth"!
What are the altie woos going to do now?
Remove their composites?
Switch to "mercury fillings"?
Remove all their teeth?
Ah, what to do...what to do?
--
Nana

"The One True Zhen Jue" wrote in message
ups.com...
On Aug 12, 1:02 am, "Chicken Little" wrote:
http://www.NewsTurd!.com/021969.html

NewsTarget.com printable article
Originally published August 9 2007
Bisphenol A chemical commonly found in canned soup and food storage
plastics
by Mike Adams

Before you decide to chew on the cap of your water bottle because you're
nervous, make sure the plastic you are chewing on isn't full of
carcinogens
and chemicals -- even though lobbyists for the plastics industry argue
that
any traces of the toxic substance bisphenol A are low and therefore,
insubstantial.

Yet another ridiculous variation of "The Sky is Falling!"

http://www.bisphenol-a.org/

Poor, poor Andrew.

Quote:




Welcome


Who We Are

This web site is sponsored by the Polycarbonate/BPA Global Group, which is
organized regionally at the American Chemistry Council, PlasticsEurope, and
the Japan Chemical Industry Association.

Just a tad bit of vested interest there.

and

http://www.bisphenol-a.org/sixty-minutes.html

BISPHENOL-A CONSUMER HEALTH & SAFETY INFORMATION


I. OVERVIEW

Products made with polycarbonate plastic or epoxy resins, both
manufactured from Bisphenol-A (BPA), are widely used by consumers
because they make our lives safer and easier. In the forty plus years
since its first commercial use, BPA's safety has been confirmed by
numerous tests designed to evaluate potential health effects and by
government assessments of those tests.

Use of polycarbonate plastics and epoxy resins in food and beverage
containers is authorized by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration
(FDA), and the European Commission's Scientific Committee on Food has
recently confirmed that food contact products made with BPA are safe
for their intended uses.

In the April 2003 edition of Current Biology, Dr. Patricia Hunt and
colleagues reported finding a chromosomal abnormality in mouse eggs
after exposure to BPA. The research did not examine any potential
effects on reproduction or development in mice, and Dr. Hunt has
acknowledged that the connection between her results and human health
has not been established (Ref. 19, 22). Moreover, as Dr. Hunt stated
in a recent interview, "I think in the case of my study, no regulatory
agency is going to change their guidelines based on the results of one
study, so obviously the way science is done is we report a finding and
someone else repeats it. So we're waiting for that replication." (Ref.
42) Significantly, the study's findings are contradicted by numerous
studies that are used by governments to assess safety, all of which
found no evidence of health effects at levels even remotely close to
what consumers may encounter through normal use of polycarbonate and
epoxy products, including no reproductive or developmental effects.

The FDA has reviewed the Current Biology article and has not altered
any of its safe use determinations, nor has it indicated any intention
to do so. Following publication of the study, George Pauli, Associate
Director for Science and Policy in the FDA's Office of Food Additive
Safety, commented, "We don't have any reason to believe that there's
any effect." (Ref. 41)

Click on the links in the text for detailed information on each of the
following points.

Polycarbonate plastic and epoxy resins - safely used for more than 40
years
Polycarbonate plastic and epoxy resins, made from BPA, have been
safely used in consumer products for more than forty years.
Polycarbonate is often used in place of glass because it is clear,
lightweight, heat-resistant, and shatter-resistant, a significant
safety advantage. Polycarbonate is so tough it is also used as bullet-
resistant glass and is used to make bicycle helmets and other safety
equipment to protect people from injuries. Epoxy resins are inert
materials used as linings in metal cans to protect foods and beverages
from spoilage and other contamination. Click here for more
information.

Extensive testing demonstrates safety of polycarbonate plastic and
epoxy resins
BPA has been extensively researched and tested. Government agencies in
the U.S., Europe and elsewhere have reviewed the research data and
confirm that polycarbonate plastic and epoxy resins may be safely used
in contact with food (Ref. 14, 56). The research demonstrating the
safety of BPA includes internationally accepted tests designed to
examine potential reproductive and developmental effects, upon which
governments rely to assess safety. These tests, examining laboratory
animals over multiple generations and conducted according to
internationally recognized standards, coupled with the assessment of
those tests by government agencies in the U.S., Europe, and Japan,
clearly support the safety of polycarbonate plastics and epoxy resins.
Click here for more information.

Consumer exposure to BPA is extremely low
Typical levels of human exposure to BPA are about 1 million times
below levels that have been demonstrated not to cause adverse effects
in the internationally recognized multi-generation reproductive
toxicity studies. Numerous recent studies that directly measure human
exposure to BPA have demonstrated that exposure to adults and children
is many times lower than the levels tested in the Current Biology
study (Ref. 1, 6, 18, 31, 44, 53, 61, 65). Click here for more
information.

The body rapidly removes BPA
BPA does not accumulate in the body. The very small amounts of BPA
that may be taken into the body are rapidly excreted. The result is
that reproductive organs would have no significant exposure to BPA
and, thus, essentially no opportunity for BPA to cause the effects
reported in the Current Biology study. Click here for more
information.

Governments have not accepted the "low-dose hypothesis"
Governments and independent scientific bodies worldwide have reviewed
the scientific evidence on the potential for BPA to cause health
effects at very low doses. No government body has accepted the so-
called "low-dose hypothesis." Furthermore, no study purporting to show
low-dose effects has been replicated in a second lab, despite repeated
efforts to do so. Before a reported finding can be accepted as
scientifically valid, it is essential to ensure the results can be
reproduced, especially in a separate laboratory. Click here for more
information.

The Current Biology study's authors speculate about effects they did
not examine
Claims of potential human effects go so far beyond the actual findings
of the study that they are scientifically dubious. The study's authors
have speculated about miscarriage and birth defects in humans based on
findings of their preliminary research in mouse eggs. The authors'
speculations are contradicted by numerous internationally accepted
studies that specifically looked for and found no evidence of such
effects at any level remotely close to levels consumers might
encounter (Ref. 12, 39, 54). In fact, Dr. Hunt herself has
acknowledged that, scientifically, a connection between her results
and human health has not been established (Ref. 19, 22). Click here
for more information.


The safety of polycarbonate plastic and epoxy resins, made from BPA,
is supported by extensive tests used to evaluate potential health
effects from BPA. These studies, along with the fact that the FDA
continues to believe polycarbonate plastic and epoxy resins are safe
when used as intended, provide strong reassurance of the safety of
these products. Based on the totality of the research, governments
around the world continue to permit the use of polycarbonate and epoxy
resins in food containers.



II. DETAILED INFORMATION ON THE SAFETY OF BPA

Polycarbonate plastic and epoxy resins - safely used for more than 40
years
Polycarbonate plastic and epoxy resins, made from BPA, have been
safely used in consumer products for more than forty years.

In addition to being clear and tough, polycarbonate has high heat and
electrical resistance. It is used in a variety of everyday products,
including:

eyeglass lenses

bicycle helmets

reusable food and drink containers

construction helmets

consumer electronics

safety goggles

household appliances

medical equipment

cell phones

computers
Epoxy resins have an exceptional combination of toughness, adhesion,
and chemical resistance. Epoxy resins are used in:

linings of food and beverage cans

electrical equipment

adhesives

flooring
Back

Extensive testing confirms safety of polycarbonate plastic and epoxy
resins

Reproductive and developmental testing:

Numerous studies conducted according to internationally recognized
standards and relied upon by governments have looked specifically for
reproductive and developmental health effects. These studies have
consistently found no such effects below, at, and as much as 4,000
times above the exposure levels in the Current Biology study.

The key studies on which experts, government officials and industry
rely for the conclusion that there are no reproductive or
developmental risks from exposure to BPA at levels anywhere near
levels a consumer might encounter include:

A continuous breeding study in mice, conducted by the U.S.
government's National Toxicology Program, showed no effects on
reproduction at a dose approximately 4000 times higher than the
highest dose tested in the Current Biology study (Ref. 39).


A study conducted at the Research Triangle Institute examined parents
and three offspring generations of rats exposed to BPA. No evidence of
developmental or reproductive effects was found at doses anywhere near
levels to which consumers might be exposed (Ref. 54).


A similar two-generation study sponsored by the Japanese Ministry of
Health and Welfare found no developmental or reproductive effects at
any dose tested. This study also included two behavioral tests of
offspring, including a learning test, and found no effect of BPA at
any dose (Ref. 12).

Genetic testing:

BPA has been studied using a standard internationally recognized test
for determining genetic effects - the mouse micronucleus assay. No
such effects were found, even at a dose 20,000 to 100,000 times higher
than the doses tested in the Current Biology study (Ref. 5).

In summary, many of the studies that ordinarily might be conducted in
response to the Current Biology findings had previously been conducted
and do not indicate a reproductive, developmental or genetic risk.

Back


Consumer exposure to BPA is extremely low
A person would have to consume more than 1,300 pounds of food and
beverages in contact with polycarbonate plastic or more than 500
pounds of food and beverages from cans lined with epoxy resins, every
day for a lifetime, to exceed the safe level of BPA set by the U.S.
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

Migration of BPA from polycarbonate plastic and epoxy resins in food
and beverage containers has been shown to be extremely low. Actual
human dietary concentrations are infinitesimal. Studies of
polycarbonate and epoxy resins by government agencies, academia, and
industry have examined the typical ways consumers use polycarbonate
products, including microwaving, washing in a dishwasher, sterilizing,
and long-term storage at a variety of temperatures, and have found
that migration from these uses is generally less than five parts per
billion. Even under conditions that go far beyond normal use,
migration of BPA is well below safe levels. For canned foods,
migration is typically less than 37 parts per billion and is so low as
to be virtually undetectable in canned beverages (Refs. 4, 9, 16, 20,
21, 25, 30, 36, 55).

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The body rapidly removes BPA
Studies demonstrate that the very small amounts of BPA that may be
taken into the body do not accumulate and are rapidly excreted. The
metabolism of BPA in humans has been reported in the scientific
literature in two studies that involve human volunteers (Ref. 53, 58).
The results of both studies show that BPA is rapidly converted to a
glucuronide metabolite that is then excreted in urine within hours
after the initial exposure. These results are consistent with the
results of multiple animal studies that also demonstrate that BPA is
rapidly metabolized (Ref. 43, 46, 48, 57). The glucuronide metabolite
of BPA does not have estrogenic activity (Ref. 32). The scientific
evidence shows that humans very efficiently metabolize and excrete
BPA, resulting in no significant exposure of the reproductive organs
to BPA.

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Governments have not accepted the "low-dose hypothesis"
Various government and independent scientific bodies worldwide have
reviewed the studies that claim BPA has the potential to cause health
effects at very low doses. No government body has accepted the so-
called "low-dose hypothesis" in general or specifically for BPA.
Notable examples include the U.S. EPA (Ref. 13), Japanese Ministry of
Economy, Trade and Industry (Ref. 23), Japanese Ministry of Health,
Labor and Welfare (Ref. 24), European Commission Scientific Committee
on Food (Ref. 14), and European Commission Scientific Committee on
Toxicity, Ecotoxicity and the Environment (Ref. 15).

In 2000, the U.S. government's National Toxicology Program's (NTP) Low
Dose Peer Review BPA Subpanel reviewed the available scientific data
to evaluate the likelihood of low dose effects and found that the data
did not prove the low-dose hypothesis for BPA. In its review of
studies led by low dose theorist Dr. Frederick vom Saal, the Subpanel
found a variety of problems, including lack of proper documentation
and, for one study, use of a methodology the panel characterized as
"prone to false positive outcomes." Despite a request from the NTP, no
raw data were submitted to support five of Dr. vom Saal's studies, so
those studies could not be evaluated at all by the NTP expert review
group (Ref. 40). In contrast, the Subpanel determined that a number of
large, statistically powerful studies in rats and mice found no
evidence for a low-dose effect of BPA. (The Tyl study, which
demonstrated no low-dose effect after examination of over one million
data points in four generations of laboratory animals across a wide
range of doses, was considered by the NTP Statistics Subpanel as
"arguably the most comprehensive of the studies we evaluated.") A
number of these statistically powerful studies were designed to
replicate in other laboratories the "low-dose" studies, but no low-
dose effects were found (Ref. 40). As the NTP Panel noted,
"Reproducibility of experimental results is an important and necessary
feature of any scientific finding before it can be generally accepted
as valid. ...Perhaps the most important kind of replication is
reproducibility among different laboratories trying to confirm the
findings of another laboratory."

Both before and subsequent to the NTP BPA Subpanel's review, academic,
government and industry researchers have published studies that report
no effects from low doses of BPA (Ref. 7, 8, 12, 54, 2, 3, 10, 11, 17,
26, 27, 28, 29, 33, 34, 35, 37, 38, 45, 47, 49, 50, 51, 52, 59, 60,
62, 63, 64, 66). These include studies in separate laboratories
specifically designed to replicate reported low-dose results (Ref. 3,
7, 8, 52).

In sum, the studies purporting to show low-dose effects were limited
studies on a few laboratory animals, did not use internationally
accepted research protocols and have not been replicated in
independent laboratories. As many governments and scientific bodies
have concluded, the weight of scientific evidence does not support the
validity of the low-dose hypothesis for BPA.

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The Current Biology study's authors speculate about effects they did
not examine
The authors of the Current Biology study have speculated about
miscarriage and birth defects, effects that could not be examined in
their research on an early phase of mouse eggs prior to cell division.
The authors did not look for actual effects after cell division.
Authoritative studies, using internationally accepted protocols that
have been validated for the evaluation of potential health effects,
have looked for evidence of effects on fertility (the equivalent of
miscarriage in mice) and increased incidence of birth defects. These
studies found BPA to have no such effects at any level remotely close
to levels consumers might encounter (Ref. 12, 39, 54).

http://www.mindfully.org/Plastic/Mon...l-A30mar00.htm

http://ec.europa.eu/health/ph_risk/c.../out156_en.pdf

Web Results 1 - 10 of about 225,000 for toxicity of BISPHENOL-A. (0.17
seconds)