One of the most pressing problems of our modern life is the ubiquitous presence of Bisphenol A and phthalates in the bodily fluids of everyone. It has also been recently found in the urine of infants, in the mother’s colostrum, and even in umbilical cord blood, suggesting universal exposure. This is a first world problem and can be a disaster if not acknowledged early in life.
BPA is considered to be an endocrine disruptor because it interferes with processes that involve the hormone Estrogen and can affect both females and males. Few other hormones are also affected by BPA.
There is growing evidence from epidemiological and laboratory studies that exposure to BPA at levels found in the general population are around 0.2–20 ng/ml (values given for urinary BPA).
This associated with adverse human health effects, including the onset of obesity and cardiovascular disease with numerous reproductive and developmental outcomes. These include increase in abnormal penile/urethra development in males, an increase in hormonally-mediated cancers including breast and prostate cancers, neuro-behavioural disorders including autism and early sexual maturation in females.
The current tolerable daily intake is 0.05 mg/kg/day and compared with this, the median exposure of the general adult population globally has been estimated from human biomonitoring or urinary BPA to be 0.01–0.12 μg/kg/day.
Temperature effect
There has been evidence that, leeching of BPA in plastic is increased when heated, this increases the toxicity.
A study was carried out to study Bisphenol A concentrations in drinking bottle water and the effect of temperature. A supersensitive BPA ELISA (Ecologiena, Japan Environchemicals, Tokyo) was used to determine the concentration of BPA in water samples. ELISA (Enzyme Linked Immuno Sorbent Assay is carried out to detect the concentration of a particular test sample, is a common analytical technique).
It is found that BPA was found to migrate from polycarbonate water bottles at rates ranging from 0.20 to 0.79 ng per hour. At room temperature the migration of BPA was independent of whether or not the bottle had been previously used. Exposure to boiling water (100°C) increased the rate of BPA migration by up to 55-fold.
Precautions.
Choose Plastic bottles carefully, Plastic bottles have a recycling code at the bottom of the bottle that looks like a triangular arrow around a number. Avoid these numbers: 3, 6 and 7. Plastics especially with the Number 7 contain BPA.
One should not microwave food or drinks in plastic containers—even if they claim to be “microwave safe.” Heat can break down plastics and release chemical additives into your food and drink. Microwaves heat unevenly, creating hot spots where the plastic is more likely to break down.
Whenever you buy any products, it is important to make sure that they do not have a plastic packaging. Please choose eco-friendly, Kraft paper boxes for food especially for kids.
Our Little Grabs Snacks are neatly packed in Kraft paper boxes and are completely BPA free.
References:
https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/nhanes/nhanes_05_06/eph_d_met_phenols_parabens.pdf
http://biosciences.exeter.ac.uk/documents/Micro-and_Nano-plastics_and_Human_Health_Galloway.pdf
https://silentspring.org/detoxmeactionkit/
http://drgeo.com/plastic-water-bottles-exposed-to-heat-can-be-toxic/
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2254523/
https://realfoodforager.com/how-to-clear-bpa-from-your-body-naturally/
https://www.gdx.net/