Controversial Plastic #7

I mentioned in my last blog that I would be tackling plastic #7 separately. The chemical bisphenol A (BPA) is present in many plastic #7 products. BPA was developed in the late 1800's as a synthetic estrogen, but in the 1950's started being used as a plastic-hardening chemical. You will find it in many baby bottles, sippy cups, water bottles, and in epoxy resins found in some food cans and dental sealants. BPA has been a subject of much controversy this year. Dr. Jennifer Sass, a senior scientist in the Natural Resources Defense Council, has stated this about BPA:

Harmful effects in the laboratory animals exposed to even the low levels of BPA that are commonly found in the blood and urine of Americans include an increase in prostate and breast cancer, type 2 diabetes, reproductive abnormalities, reduced semen quality, recurrent miscarriage, obesity, and neurobehavioral problems similar to attention deficit hyperactivity disorder. 1

An FDA draft report on BPA released last Friday, August 15, 2008 has declared the chemical to be safe at typical human exposures. However, testing apparently was funded largely by the industry and therefore is suspect in my opinion. The National Toxicology Program, which reports its findings to the FDA, had not yet released its final report on BPA when the FDA decided to put out its draft report.

I have great concern over the possible danger regarding BPA pointed out by scientists such as Dr. Sass and other independent scientists. I am greatly limiting my exposure to BPA and plastic #7. Take a walk around your grocery store bakery and look at the plastic containers they use. I found #7 everywhere. There is a very helpful website which lists all the companies that make baby bottles and sippy cups, informing you of the level of BPA used in their products. Please check it out for your family. Click here: Z Recommends: The Z Report on BPA In Children's Feeding Products, Third Edition

1 - www.nrdc.org, Press Release August 8, 2007, quote by Dr. Jennifer Sass.

Top Ten Organic Buys

Are you confused about eating organic? I just heard an interview with an expert on one of the morning programs. He said it really didn’t matter if you ate organic or not because there are no more vitamins and minerals in an organic fruit/veggie than a non-organic fruit/veggie. To be quite honest, that is not why I prefer to buy organic. I buy organic produce because I know there have been no pesticides used on my strawberries, and no chemicals sprayed on my apples, and no toxins making my grapes taste just a little bit funny.

But, let’s face it. . . who can afford to buy all organic produce? My food budget jumps quite a bit when I buy all organic products at the grocery. So, if we have to make some hard choices, here are the top 10 foods that we should try to buy organic. 1

1. Apples
A is for apple — and a lot of pesticides. According to the Food and Drug Administration, more pesticides (a whopping 36) are found on apples than on any other fruit or vegetable. In one test, as many as seven chemicals were found on a single apple.

No organic? Peel your apples, and look for apples from New Zealand (it's noted on the little produce stickers), which are treated with half as many pesticides as those grown Stateside.

2. Baby Foods
"An infant's immune, nervous, and detoxification system is less developed than an adult's and more vulnerable to the effects of pesticides," says Elson M. Haas, M.D., author of The Staying Healthy Shopper's Guide. The green beans, peaches, and apples that go into baby food (and all over your kitchen floor) tend to be treated with chemicals. Organic brands like Earth's Best are available.

No organic? Make your own purees by tossing organic fruits and vegetables into the blender.

3. Butter and Milk
The grains that dairy cows eat are heavily treated with chemicals, which have a residual, though still notable, presence in milk and dairy products. (Milk may also contain bovine growth hormone and antibiotics.)

4. Cantaloupe
Cantaloupes often contain five of the longest-lasting chemicals, one of which is dieldrin, an exceedingly toxic and carcinogenic insecticide. Though it was banned in 1974, residues still persist in soils and are taken up through the cantaloupe's roots and absorbed into the edible portion.

No organic? Thoroughly wash the outside of the melon, since a knife can drag exterior residues through the flesh as you slice it.

5. Cucumbers
In a survey of 42 common vegetables, cucumbers were ranked second in cancer risk and 12th in "most contaminated food" by the Environmental Working Group, a respected public-interest group.

No organic? Peel the cucumbers, since the waxes used to make the skin shiny also tend to hold chemicals.

6. Grapes
Because grapes ripen quickly, tend to mold, and attract insects, growers hit them with multiple applications of various chemicals. The worst are Chilean grapes, which are treated with as many as 17 of them. (Ninety percent of the grapes eaten in the United States from January to April are Chilean.)

No organic? Buy grapes grown domestically; they are treated with fewer chemicals.

7. Green Beans
The Environmental Protection Agency has more than 60 pesticides registered for use on green beans.

No organic? Choose fresh beans over canned or frozen. Wash them well.

8. Spinach
In a certain cartoon, spinach makes muscles. In real life, the chemicals used to treat it may cause cancer or interfere with hormone production.

No organic? Vigilantly wash each leaf separately under running water.

9. Strawberries
Strawberries are one of the most contaminated of all produce items in the United States.

No organic? Choose local berries over long-distance ones (there's less spraying). The package should say where they're from, or the supermarket's produce manager should know.

10. Winter Squash
Like cantaloupes and cucumbers, winter squash has a propensity to absorb dieldrin from the soil into its edible parts.

No organic? Buy Mexican. The soil in Mexico is largely uncontaminated by dieldrin.

Happy Eating!

1 Above list: Michele Bender, “Real Simple”, August, 2001, http://www.realsimple.com/realsimple/content/0,21770,688584,00.html, (August 6, 2008)

Plastics-Check your labels!

I have to talk about plastics as my very first article, as it is such a growing problem in the subject of toxic sources. I want to make sure that everyone knows about the labeling system for plastics, and what it means to you. Your plastic containers, cups and bags should have a triangle on the bottom with a number in the middle. That system is utilized in recycling programs, as some plastics can be recycled and some cannot. However, this number also tells you which plastic the product is made of so that you know how toxic it is to your body! This is what each number is, and I'll give a few examples of that plastic:

#1 - PET or PETE (polyethylene terephthalate). Water/soft drink bottles, salad dressing and veg oil bottles, peanut butter containers, some food packaging films. The American Chemistry Council stands by its assertion that, "...these materials are essentially nontoxic and pose no threats to human health..."1 Still be very careful, however, not to reuse these bottles or heat them (like in a dishwasher), as that could change the leaching ability of this chemical.
#2 - HDPE (high density polyethylene). Milk jugs, some detergent and cleaner and shampoo bottles, yogurt and butter tubs, cereal box liners. Not known to be a carcinogen or leach chemicals.
#3 - PVC (polyvinyl chloride). Clear food packaging, some detergent and shampoo and cooking oil bottles, piping. Vinyl chloride is listed by the 11th Report on Carcinogens as "known to be a human carcinogen."
#4 - LDPE (low density polyethylene). Squeezable bottles, bread and frozen food and grocery bags. Not known to be a carcinogen or leach chemicals.
#5 - PP (polypropylene). Some yogurt and syrup and ketchup containers, straws, some kids' cups. Not known to be a carcinogen or leach chemicals.
#6 - PS (polystyrene). Styrofoam products, trays for chicken/beef/pork, egg cartons, carry-out containers, CD cases. This chemical can be made into either rigid or foam products. It may leach styrene into foods. Styrene is listed by the 11th Report on Carcinogens as "reasonably anticipated to be a human carcinogen."
#7 - Miscellaneous. Polycarbonate water bottles, food and carry-out containers, nylon, Nalgene products, some baby bottles, some metal can liners, epoxy resins. The #7 category is a catch-all category. The chemical Bisphenol A, found in many #7 products, is a hot topic right now, a very bad chemical, and I will do a separate post on that one to explain it in more detail.

At this stage of the game from what we know for sure, get rid of #3, #6 and #7 plastics in your home! Get in the habit of checking all plastics for the little triangle on the bottom of containers before you use it or buy it. Remove food from carry-out containers as soon as you get home. Use glass containers as much as possible.

Blessings,
Heidi

1 - Packaging Materials: 1. PET for Food Packaging Applications. International Life Sciences Institute; 2000, Washington D.C., p. 11.