BPA has been linked to prostate and breast cancers; behavioral disorders; reproductive and neurological problems; neural and behavioral effects in fetuses, infants, and children; and early onset for female puberty. Most recently, we reported on a study that linked BPA to diabetes, heart disease, and liver enzyme abnormalities. Meanwhile, last year, the Environmental Working Group conducted an analysis of BPA in canned foods and found the amount varies depending on the food: Condensed milk has relatively little BPA; infant formula contains much more at about one-fifth the safe dose limit set by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA). Risks are also dependent on consumption amounts. While canned soda has less BPA per serving than some other foods, people tend to drink more than one can every now and then.
With studies confirming BPA’s danger to humans and the controversy mounting, there are some steps consumers can take to help avoid ingesting the toxic chemical that seems to be virtually everywhere and in everything.
- Buy tomato sauce in glass jars. Canned tomato sauce is likely to have higher levels of BPA because of the tomatoes’ high acidity causing increased amounts of BPA to leach from the can’s lining into the food. This also applies to any type of canned pasta, included canned ravioli and canned children’s meals.
- Eat frozen or fresh fruits and vegetables instead of their canned counterparts. Not only do fresh and frozen fruits and vegetables offer BPA-free food options, they are generally richer in nutrients, which are often lost in the canning process. By the way, Eden Foods offers canned BPA-free beans.
- Purchase beverages in plastic or glass bottles. Canned soda and juice generally contain some BPA; however, disposable plastic water bottles typically do not contain BPA. To confirm, disposable water bottles that contain BPA generally bear the number 7 recycling code on the bottom of the bottle.
- Use powdered infant formula instead of the ready-to-serve liquid type. In a separate assessment from the Environmental Working Group, it found that liquid formulas contain more BPA than powdered brands.
- Think of moderation. Eat less of those foods that are high in BPA.
Unfortunately, the drug has had a devastating effect on the female offspring (and possibly even the grandchildren) of women who took DES. Cancer, infertility, and other permanent injuries have been linked to DES. There is also growing suspicion that DES may also have had adverse effects on male children of DES mothers.
Now, an animal (rat) study published in the journal Science has produced evidence that certain toxins may poison and pass diseases down for up to four generations. The researchers from Washington State University (led by Dr. Michael Skinner) exposed pregnant rats to a commonly used vineyard fungicide (vinclozolin) and a pesticide (methoxycchlor) during the period when the sex of the offspring was being determined. The exposed rats produced male offspring with low sperm counts and impaired fertility.
When these offspring were mated with healthy females, the male offspring had the same problems. This pattern persisted through at least four generations and affected over 90% of the male offspring in each of those generations. Dr. Skinner believes diseases like breast and prostate cancer, which are becoming more common, may be linked to similar trans-generational toxic exposure. It may also mean that exposure to environmental toxins may play an important role in the evolutionary process itself.
Since the levels of toxic exposure in the study were very high, the extent to which the effect may be concentration related is unclear. Thus, research needs to be done with much lower doses. Nonetheless, Dr. Skinner sees the study as "a new way to think about disease."