Did the FDA Turn A Blind Eye To BPA?

If you eat canned foods or drink bottled water, be afraid, be very afraid. Bisphenol A or (BPA) is a plastic and resin ingredient used in the lining on metal cans and a main building block for polycarbonate (PC) in plastic bottles. Although even low doses of BPA have been linked to cancer, birth defects, diabetes, obesity, and miscarriages, no food safety authority in the U.S. has banned it.

David Schardt, a nutritionist for the Center for Science for the Public Interest (CSPI) says, "We don''t want to tell people not to eat canned beans or tomatoes, but at the same time it makes sense for all parents and especially pregnant and nursing women, to minimize the exposure of their kids' developing bodies and brains to BPA."

Scientists have tested canned food bought all across America and have found BPA, in more than half of them. These levels were found to be some 200 times the government's safe level of exposure for industrial chemicals. The EPA is responsible for the safeguarding of the public food supply but instead, seems more interested in protection the financial interests of big business. In 2007 the EPA based its approval of BPA on a small number of studies sponsored by the chemical industry. Recently, the new EPA chief Margret Hamburg, announced that they would conduct a review of their opinion of BPA. Many see this turnaround as a de facto admission.

At this time there are no standards for the use of BPA. Billions of pounds of BPA are used each year without restriction. Chicken soup, ravioli and infant formula are among the foods with the highest levels of BPA. Plastic bottles with the type # 7 should also be avoided. Some companies do not use BPA but most do. For a list of companies responses to BPA check Organic Grace.

If the EPA is unwilling or unable to protect us, the public, must be responsible for our own health. How can we protect ourselves from dangers like BPA? Start cooking your food from scratch and avoid canned baby formula. Don't be gullible enough to believe that the EPA or the Government is looking out for your health and well-being.


by Renee Rotto