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This topic is a bit unusual for this blog, but over the past few weeks I've grown a bit alarmed about Bisphenol-A or BPA.

BPA is a chemical compound. It's most often found in Polycarbonate Plastics. Polycarbonate Plastics are those cool clear plastics you see everywhere. For example, all those trendy Nalgene colored and clear water bottles are made from Polycarbonates. Another common item is made from Polycarbonates; over 90% of baby bottles. You can see all the types of things Polycarbonates are made into.

So who cares, lots of things are made of plastic. Well, there is a fairly raging debate that BPAs can leach from plastic when heated, and that BPAs can cause all sorts of ails like cancer. Now I don't consider myself an environmentalist, and I certainly realize that in the modern industrial world we live in we are constantly exposed to things that are bad for us; the air we breath, the weather, the hole in the ozone layer, pesticides, global warming and so on. However, a few weeks ago my wife went to a talk at Stanford given by a colleague of hers and one of the issues discussed were BPAs. Anyway it was enough to pique my wife's interest and then mine.

My basic philosophy on these sorts of things is this. If all the "industry funded plastics research" says one thing, and much of the "independent" research says another thing, then something is fishy. For all we know, this is just the very beginning in our understanding of the long term affects of BPA and 20 years from now we'll look back at this and wish we knew more... OR it's perfectly safe and there is nothing to worry about. But when presented with a choice in the matter, I would rather avoid this sort of thing, especially when my child on the way. What I do find scary is the number of pro BPA websites that the plastics industry has already set up to remind us how "safe" it is because the FDA has yet to prove otherwise... (www.NoAB319.org, http://www.bisphenol-a.org/)

Before I go on I should explain that not all plastics contain BPA, and that you should mainly be concerned with plastics that come in contact with food as the heat is what can accelerate BPA leaching. There are a few kinds of plastics and they can be identified by those little triangled number symbols.

Number	Code	Name	Example	BPAs
	PETE	Polyethylene Terephthalate (PET)	Soda & water containers, some waterproof packaging.	No
	HDPE	High-Density Polyethylene	Milk, detergent & oil bottles. Toys and plastic bags.	No
	V	Vinyl/Polyvinyl Chloride (PVC)	Food wrap, vegetable oil bottles, blister packages.	Yes
	LDPE	Low-Density Polyethylene	Many plastic bags. Shrink wrap, garment bags.	No
	PP	Polypropylene	Refrigerated containers, some bags, most bottle tops,	No
	PS	Polystyrene	Throwaway utensils, meat packing, protective packing.	Yes
	Other	Usually layered or mixed plastic.	Acrylic, polycarbonate, polylactic acid , nylon and fiberglass.	Maybe

So the past few weeks Lora and I decided to get rid of of Beloved Polycarbonate Nalgene bottles, plastic coffee mugs, or any other form of plastic that we might heat up. This includes any tupperware (luckily we use the pyrex class tupperware). We replaced all our Nalgene Lexan bottles with the excellent swiss SIGG bottles. You can also opt to use the white Nalgene bottles as they are made from High Density Polyethylene (BPA free).

However, when it came to finding Baby Bottles that weren't made of Polycarbonate things to a bit tougher. Basically you have a few choices:

1. Good old Glass bottles. Evenflo makes them into two sizes (4oz and 8oz)
2. Playtex Original Nurser Polycarbonate bottles with Polypropylene Drop-ins Inserts (the formula goes in the Polypropylene which does not contain BPAs).
3. Born Free (I was actually wondering when a Baby Bottle company would get wise and take advantage of the uncertainty around BPA safety and market this fact). I have yet to try see these for myself, and the web site is not clear about what kind of BPA free plastic they use. update: Whole Foods and Amazon (5oz and 9oz) now carry Born Free Bottles and I purchased some. They are made from a material called Polyamide which appears to be a bio-plastic.
4. Snappies - Polypropylene breast milk storage bottles.
5. Medela breast pump storage containers and baby bottles are all made of Polypropylene

What's also very interesting is that San Francisco just became the first place in the world to ban the use of baby products with BPA effective December 1st 2006.

Under the proposed ordinance, no product that is intended for use by a child under 3 years of age could be manufactured, sold or distributed in San Francisco if it contains bisphenol A, or BPA, an ingredient in hard, clear polycarbonate plastic. Some forms of phthalate, a chemical that softens plastic, including polyvinyl chloride, or PVC, would also be banned.

And it looks like the State of California is considering similar legislation:

But evidence is mounting that even in low exposure levels, BPA can be dangerous, especially for infants and developing fetuses. BPA is eerily similar to estrogen, the naturally occurring hormone that regulates sexual development, and since the 1990s, early exposure has been linked to a variety of problems, ranging from early puberty and undescended testicles to birth defects like hypospadia. Recently, scientists at the University of Cincinnati and the University of Illinois at Chicago found that exposing newborn rats to low levels of BPA permanently damaged their genes in ways that caused them to develop prostate cancer. Given that BPA tends to concentrate in the placenta and amniotic fluid of pregnant women in five to 10 times the levels found in the average adult, the research raises troubling questions about the potential for prenatal exposure to BPA to cause prostate cancer decades down the line.

As with all animal studies, it remains to be seen how well the findings will apply to humans. But as scientific evidence of the risks accumulates, and as rates of reproductive-system diseases continue to rise, it’s time to take some common-sense measures to limit exposure. For consumers, this means avoiding using cookware or food storage items containing BPA and being especially careful about microwaving plastics, which can cause them to leach BPA at higher levels. For our state legislators, it means following San Francisco’s lead and banning BPA from child-care products.

Assemblywoman Wilma Chan of Oakland introduced just such a ban in January, only to have it die in committee amid intense lobbying by the plastic industry. Chan is planning to reintroduce the bill later this year, and we urge support for this important effort.

I found this great blog post from  Julie Deardorff of the Chicago Tribune, where she writes on her blog:

Just last week, researchers at the University of Illinois at Chicago and the University of Cincinnati found the first evidence that early exposure to low levels of BPA, which mimics the female estrogen hormone, may result in a predisposition to prostate cancer later in life. The exposure to BPA permanently altered genes in the rat pups, according to the study published in the journal Cancer Research.

The plastics industry plays down the threat from BPA, but at least one enlightened city—San Francisco—is considering adopting the nation’s first ban on BPA, a move that comes after a similar measure died in the California Legislature. The proposed ban would also prohibit forms of phthalate, a chemical that softens plastic, including polyvinyl chloride, or PVC.

What can a pregnant woman do? Plastic is impossible to avoid. The U.S. produces more than 1.6 million pounds of BPA annually. But for starters:

1. Don't microwave in plastics. Use heat-resistant glass containers, Corning Ware or ceramics to microwave all your products, even if it is "microwave safe."
2. Cover food with a paper towel rather than plastic wrap in the microwave. Never microwave baggies.
3. Even organic microwavable foods have plastic coverings. Take two minutes to remove the product from its plastic wrapping and put it in a glass or ceramic bowl before cooking.
4. Don’t drink hot liquids through a straw. Not only will you burn your tongue and throat, but the heat will pull the chemicals from the straw into your coffee.
5. Drink water out of glasses or glass bottles

So it's really very simple. You can do nothing and that's your prerogative. But I think folks should at least know that this debate is brewing, and that you can avoid a potentially harmful chemical if you chose... Why take the risk if you can find a cost effective suitable alternative for you and your child?

Anyway, I hope this information serves useful to some one. I documented this in the hopes that folks searching for this information will at least find some links to BPA free baby bottles which is what I really wanted to find before stepping into this quagmire. I seriously think plastic is an amazing invention, but I also wonder if the plastics industry is in for a lot of scrutiny in the next few decades as people begin to better understand the effects of plastic in our lives.

Oh and I definitely recommend reading the Smart Plastics Guide.