Bisphenol A not safe again!

Mommy instinct prevails! Most of you were not convinced bisphenol A is safe in baby bottles and other plastic even though the FDA said otherwise. Now, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration is changing its tune.

From the Washington Post: A U.S. Food and Drug Administration advisory panel agreed Friday that the agency had erred in August when it said that a chemical widely used in baby bottles and other plastic packaging for foods and beverages posed no health risks.

On Wednesday, a panel of toxicology experts said the FDA hadn't properly assessed the potential health risks posed by the chemical bisphenol A (BPA), which some studies have linked to cancer, diabetes, heart disease and developmental delays in children. The toxicologists said the FDA had relied too heavily on studies funded by the chemical industry to make its decision, and had failed to consider other studies that questioned the safety of BPA.

The panel of toxicologists had been convened by the FDA after the agency ruled that BPA was safe at current exposure levels -- a stance that prompted criticism from some lawmakers and consumer groups. On Friday, the FDA's Science Board, which consists of scientists from academia, government and industry and advises the FDA commissioner, seconded the toxicologists' concerns about the FDA's August ruling. The issue will now go to FDA Commissioner Dr. Andrew von Eschenbach. It's unclear how the FDA might respond, the Washington Post reported.

"Let me be clear: There's no shame for having" your hypothesis disproved, von Eschenbach said during Friday's session, referring to BPA without mentioning it by name, the Dow Jones news service reported.

The FDA's position on BPA has been controversial because it contradicted more than 100 studies, as well as a finding by the U.S. National Toxicology Program, that there was "some concern" that BPA may affect the brain and behavioral development in fetuses, infants and small children, the Post said.

Norris Alderson, associate commissioner for science at the FDA, toldDow Jonesthat the agency will probably start research early in 2009 to determine the toxic effects of BPA on babies less than 1 month old. Babies are considered the most susceptible group to BPA's effects. It's unclear when those studies would be done, the news service said.

In September, a study published in the Journal of the American Medical Associationsaid that people with high levels of BPA were more likely to have heart disease, including heart attack, or diabetes. High BPA levels increased the risk for these diseases by 39 percent, the researchers reported. To learn more about BPA, visit Environment California.

SOURCES: Hugh S. Taylor, M.D., director of the Division of Reproductive Endocrinology and Infertility, and professor of obstetrics and gynecology, Yale University School of Medicine, New Haven, Conn.; American Chemistry Council, news release, Oct. 31, 2008;Washington Post;Dow Jones

From what I know about this, this is unacceptable. The reason the FDA was looking into bispehol A in the first place is because of those 100 or so studies. So why in the world didn't they look at those studies before saying it was safe? There is no excuse for this. The evidence was there the first time. Why did they do such a poor job assessing the information that existed? Were they just in a hurry or what? I don't like this. If anyone has some insight for me, please share!

-NewsAnchorMom Jen

Methodist Medical Center's new online healthcare program, MyMethodist eHealth, is a proud sponsor of this blog post. MyMethodist eHealth is the secure link to your doctor's office that lets you request appointments, order prescription refills, update your personal health record, and more. Sign up for MyMethodist eHealth here.

The FDA on BPA

The head of the Food and Drug Administration spoke today about the chemical known as BPA or bisphenol A. It is found in many plastics, including several brands of baby bottles. Animal studies have shown BPA can cause developmental and neurological deficits. The FDA made a statement about the chemical today.

The ABC script is below. I also typed in some verbatim from the news conference. I don't think the head of the FDA said BPA is safe, but many news reports are saying otherwise. To me, it sounds like she is saying there isn't enough BPA in a baby bottle to cause harm as far as she knows, but more research is needed. I guess the ABC reporter took the information differently based on the lead sentence of the story below. I am putting all the information on this blog so you can decide for yourself.

ABC:The head of the Food and Drug Administration Laura Tarantino, said the chemical known as BPA is safe. The chemical is used in plastic baby bottles, and the latest study shows, that exposure to BPA, is linked to diabetes and heart disease. At a hearing in Rockville, Maryland today, Tarantino said however, the FDA will continue to look at more research.

Verbatim from News Conference from Laura Tarantino: "The conclusion is consistent with that of other national regulatory bodies with the responsibility for food packaging. They have concluded upon review of the available information there is not a health risk to consumers including children at current levels of exposure. There's not evidence sufficient to change the determination that the current margains of safety are protective. However, we agree with the findings of NTP and others that the animals studies that suggest a potential for developmental or neuro-behavioral effects cannot be dismissed. We further agree that more research is needed."

How do you interpret this statement from the FDA?

-NewsAnchorMom Jen

Methodist Medical Center's new online healthcare program, MyMethodist eHealth, is a proud sponsor of this blog post. MyMethodist eHealth is the secure link to your doctor's office that lets you request appointments, order prescription refills, update your personal health record, and more. Sign up for MyMethodist eHealth here.

FDA Declares Bisphenol A Safe

I must say I am surprised by the FDA's findings. Canada has banned Bisphenol A, Wal-Mart no longer sells baby bottles that contain the chemical and several states are involved in lawsuits over it. Here's one scientist who's research found the chemical harmful.

Some people say banning Bisphenol A would hurt companies and lead to fewer products. But if there's even a slight chance it is toxic, I think most parents would lean toward keeping it out kid's products.

According to the Consumerist: The FDA has revisited its earlier studies and reaffirmed that "the trace amounts of Bisphenol A that leach out of food containers are not a threat to infants or adults."

Studies have shown the biggest danger with Bisphenol A leaking into your food is if you heat the product. That's why many parents are only buying BPA free baby bottles and staying away from plastic when heating food in the microwave. Now the FDA says not to worry about it. It's probably too late for that!

Now the question is, did the harmful effects of Bisphenol A get blown out of proportion or is the government protecting companies that would suffer if the chemical were banned?

-NewsAnchorMom Jen

Methodist Medical Center's new online healthcare program, MyMethodist eHealth, is a proud sponsor of this blog post. MyMethodist eHealth is the secure link to your doctor's office that lets you request appointments, order prescription refills, update your personal health record, and more. Sign up for MyMethodist eHealth here.

Bisphenol A in more than just plastic

NewsAnchorMom Teresa Snow from KRCG in Jefferson City, Mo sent me this interview she did on bisphenol A, the toxic chemical that has been under fire recently for being in many baby bottles. Thank you for passing along this great information!

-NewsAnchorMom Jen

I recently interviewed a fellow mother of twins who is a pioneer in the research into the effects of bisphenol A. Susan Nagel PhD, assistant professor of Women's Health at the University of Missouri Medical School explained what bottles should concern you. BPA is found in #7 plastics. They are hard plastic bottles you can see through, made of polycarbonate. Ones you can “crinkle” are not this type.

Her research looked at the effects of BPA on mice. In one study the mice drank water that contained the chemical in levels that mimic what we would consume drinking water from a plastic drinking bottle. In some the chromosomal damage lead to miscarriages. Mice that were successfully delivered were followed three to six months as they matured. Males exposed to BPA inutero developed enlarged prostates. The females experienced accelerated puberty. “There were many concerning effects,” lists Nagel, “exposed mice also have shown increased hyperactivity, obesity and insulin resistance, which can lead to diabetes, and decreased maternal behavior.”

Nagel says she won’t refuse a drink from a plastic water bottle but there’s plenty you can do at home to limit your exposure to chemicals from plastics. She advises you get rid of polycarbonate drinking bottles. She used glass baby bottles with her children and says they are a sturdy alternative. Do not heat foods or drinks in plastic containers. The heating can accelerate the reaction between the chemicals in plastics and your food. While we don't know all the ways we are exposed to BPA, Nagel says you can also be exposed by eating food out of metal cans. They are often lined with plastic containing BPA to keep the food from having a metal taste. But during the heating process BPA can leech into the liquid. She recommends rinsing canned foods when possible.

It's important to note government agencies are mixed on whether BPA causes a real health risk to humans. A Center's for Disease Control study published this year looked at urine samples from 2500 people. Results show more than 90 percent of Americans over the age of 6 have BPA in their system. But lead research chemist Antonia Calafat of the CDC says the levels show only trace amounts, lower than in the animal studies.

A 2007 brief from the National Institutes of Health's National Toxicology Program takes a more cautious approach saying while there's no direct evidence BPA causes harm, the animal data shows there's a possibility the chemical can affect human development. The FDA is the agency that could recall products containing BPA, but they aren't ready to do that. The agency's website states, a large body of evidence shows human exposure to BPA is at safe levels.

Teresa Snow is the 5, 6 & 10 pm anchor at KRCG-TV, the Barrington Broadcasting station covering Columbia and Jefferson City, Missouri. She has been a news anchor for 20 years and mom for 8. Teresa and her husband have two sets of twins! Kyle and Travis are entering third grade and Ashley and Tony second grade next fall.

-NewsAnchorMom Teresa

Methodist Medical Center's new online healthcare program, MyMethodist eHealth, is a proud sponsor of this blog post. MyMethodist eHealth is the secure link to your doctor's office that lets you request appointments, order prescription refills, update your personal health record, and more. Sign up for MyMethodist eHealth here.

Toxic Baby Bottles and Cups!

Many of you are in the process of getting rid of plastic cups and other food items at your house after all the warnings about the chemical Bisphenol A or BPA. I know I am. And the latest story on this makes me even more certain of my decision!

Here's the latest on the chemical Bisphenol-A from WHOI:

The National Institute of Health will imminently release a federal report on Bisphenol-A, or BPA, a chemical that causes cancer, obesity and neurological disorders in animals. BPA leaches into food and drinks from most hard plastics, including 95 percent of baby bottles. Because babies and children are developing at such a rapid rate, even extremely low doses of BPA pose a threat.

In response to the growing scientific consensus about the dangers of BPA, safe alternatives and state legislation to ban the chemical have emerged nationwide. Nine states (California, Connecticut, Hawaii, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Minnesota, New York and Pennsylvania) are currently considering bills related to BPAs dangers to children. Several companies, including the fastest-growing baby bottle company in the country, BornFree, are now producing safe BPA-free bottles. (Those are the ones I bought.)

You can find more information at NewBornFree.com

There is also a blog called Z Recommends that seems to do a lot of research on Bisphenol A products.

And here's the Bisphenol-A website that says the plastic is still safe to use.

-NewsAnchorMom Jen

Methodist Medical Center's new online healthcare program, MyMethodist eHealth, is a proud sponsor of this blog post. MyMethodist eHealth is the secure link to your doctor's office that lets you request appointments, order prescription refills, update your personal health record, and more. Sign up for MyMethodist eHealth here.

Banning Bisphenol-A

I am having a hard time deciding what kind of cup to give my sons. I am grateful I used the medela bottles when my youngest son was a baby because they do not contain the chemical bisphenol-A, but now what? The sippy cups obviously have it in them. I am debating whether to spend the money to get some cups that I know are bisphenol-free. After reading this story, I am thinking I better.

From ABC News:

Citing health concerns, Wal-Mart say it will no longer sell some products in plastic bottles made with a common chemical. And the government of Canada says it will ban the chemical completely. Several studies have shown the chemical bisphenol-A can cause behavioral and neurological symptoms later in life. Toxicology studies also show there's an increased risk of early puberty, breast and prostate cancer.

Officials at the National Institutes of Health concluded last August, that there is a potential threat to humans, but more research is needed. Some experts recommend buying bisphenol-free plastic or using glass. Researchers say boiling or heating water in plastic baby bottles and other products has been shown to cause BPA to leak out.

Here's a post I did in February that looks at which bottles/cups are bisphenol-free.

This is the sippy I am considering buying, but it's $12.00 for one! That's steep!

What do you think? Should we be throwing away our plastic baby bottles, sippy cups and food containers? It certainly makes you wonder.

-NewsAnchorMom Jen

Safe Baby Bottles?

Have you heard all the buzz about avoiding certain plastic baby bottles? It kind of goes along with the "Chemicals in Baby Products" post from earlier this week. Some environmentalists say bisphenol A and phthalates found in many plastic baby bottles can be harmful to our babies. They say the chemicals are released when the bottles are heated.

I saw this story on USA Today that actually tells us which bottles some moms consider safer. The BornFree baby bottle is the one getting the most attention.

Here's the part of the article I found interesting:

It's(BornFree) made from a plastic five times as expensive as the one routinely used for baby bottles. It has to be shipped all the way from Israel. And its retail price — $9.50 — is about triple that of a conventional bottle.

It's also a big seller in stores catering to parents who want the safest possible environment for their babies, stores where items labeled "bisphenol A-free" and "phthalate-free" line up next to the cloth diapers and breast pumps.

Here's a list of the bottles I compiled from USA Today:

• BornFree baby bottle contains no chemicals.
• Adiri Natural Nurser contains no chemicals.


• Medela bottles have always been bisphenol A-free.


• Evenflo has marketed a glass baby bottle since the era when all baby bottles were glass, but its plastic bottles contain the chemical.


• Gerber sells several bisphenol A-free bottles, including its Clear View, Fashion Tints and Gentle Flow lines.


• Playtex Nurser System disposable liners also do not contain the chemical.
  

Small companies focusing on baby bottles without bisphenol A are doing a brisk business. BornFree went on sale in the USA last year, and the Adiri Natural Nurser made its debut this summer. Adiri can "barely keep up with demand" and ran out of its smallest bottles just after their launch in August, says Sarah Eisner, vice president of sales and marketing. "We don't want to say all other bottles are evil. You have this brand-new life, so why not start out with materials you know aren't harmful?"

The chemical industry has responded quickly to the threat to its market share. The American Chemistry Council, through a complaint filed with the Better Business Bureau, forced BornFree to change its marketing this year. The company used to pitch its bottles as a safer alternative but was ordered in February not to claim its products were more child- or eco-friendly.

There is an entire website dedicated to telling us bisphenal A is harmless.

Here's a glimpse of what it says:

"For decades, polycarbonate plastic has been safely used to make baby bottles and reusable water bottles. The safety of these products has been supported by numerous science-based safety evaluations of bisphenol A that have been conducted by independent government and scientific bodies worldwide.

For example, recent evaluations by the European Food Safety Authority and NSF International both provide strong support for the safety of polycarbonate bottles. In spite of this strong scientific support, numerous myths, misinformation and scare stories about polycarbonate bottles continue to circulate. Several new studies have carefully examined these myths and provide additional strong support for the safe use of polycarbonate bottles."

I use the Medela bottles, mainly because I'm still nursing and those fit on the breast pump. Convenience is key in my household!

-NewsAnchorMom Jen