BPA: What it Is & Why We Should Ban It

BPA stands for Bisphenol A. You'll find it in everything from baby bottles to canned foods. Particularly canned tomatoes. And it's an endocrine disruptor. There's a bill in Congress to ban it right now.

Back in February, news came out that BPA remains in our bodies for longer than previously thought. According to blogger JayinPortland:

BPA is a known endocrine disruptor commonly used in the production of many household items, from baby bottles to plastic food containers to soup cans to dental fillings; and exposure via tap water and house dust is now also thought possible.  Many studies have linked long term, low-level BPA exposure to everything from increased risks for obesity by triggering fat-cell activity, to diabetes, heart disease and an increased risk of developing breast cancer later in life from fetal exposure.

Not good, huh? Jay's been reporting on this issue regularly, writing about a study of how major companies are addressing the issue (the grades the companies got ranged from C's to F's) and about how the government has failed to protect us from it. In the latter article, he quotes the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel as saying:

In one instance, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration's deputy director sought information from the BPA industry's chief lobbyist to discredit a Japanese study that found it caused miscarriages in workers who were exposed to it. This was before government scientists even had a chance to review the study.

So what's the latest? The BPA industry is banding together to fight the possibility of a ban on BPA. Major companies like Pepsi, Nestle, and Bayer have also been lobbying the U.S. government about the bills that would ban BPA. Meanwhile, food safety advocates hope that the BPA ban can be added as an amendment to a food safety bill so that they can be passed together. Please write your legislators and ask them to ban BPA!

Photo credit: eyeliam on Flickr.com