Anyone know anything about this next hazard , wrt electronics handling, heating etc, where exactly is it found ?
Firstly the "bis" of bisphenol - is it pronounced as the "bis" in bistable or "bis" in biscuit ?
Packaging chemical linked to greater risk of diseases Some of the products which might contain bisphenol A include:
· Hard clear plastic - and sometimes tinted - water bottles. · Hard clear plastic baby feeding bottles. · Hard plastic baby toys. · Food storage containers, plastic bowls and tableware. · Cans of baked beans, soup, vegetables, fizzy drinks, etc. · Dental sealant to prevent cavities. · Electronic equipment. · Spray-on flame retardants.· Calls for 'aggressive action' to limit use of bisphenol A · Further research needed to confirm findings
- Sarah Boseley, health editor * The Guardian, * Wednesday September 17 2008
Tougher restrictions on the use of a chemical used to line food and drink cans and found in baby bottles and other plastic containers will be demanded today, following publication of research linking it to increased risk of heart disease, diabetes and liver abnormalities in adults.
Environmental campaigners have long worried over the ubiquitous presence of bisphenol A, which 90% of people have at low levels in their bodies. Evidence from animal studies shows it is an endocrine disrupter, which can mimic the naturally occurring hormone oestrogen. Critics say it could potentially interfere with the development of a foetus.
Until now, there has been more speculation than evidence about its effects on humans. Today, however, research by scientists at Exeter University, published in the Journal of the American Medical Association (Jama), finds that adults with higher levels of bisphenol A in their bodies have higher rates of certain diseases.
The study will step up pressure on regulatory bodies to control use of the chemical. Two leading US scientists are calling in the same issue of Jama for "aggressive action" to limit human exposure, and accuse drug regulators in the US and Europe of turning a blind eye to warning signs in animal studies. The results of the trial will today be put before a committee of the US regulator, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), which is considering what action, if any, needs to be taken. Scientist Iain Lang says problems arise from long-term exposure to chemical used in drinks cans Link to this audio
The research was based on data from the US, collected from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey, 2003-04, which included 1,455 adults over 18 and under 74. The concentration of bisphenol A in the body was measured through a urine sample.
The scientists found that people with cardiovascular disease and diabetes had higher concentrations of bisphenol A in their urine, even when age and sex was taken into consideration. Those with the highest concentrations of the chemical in their bodies had nearly three times the likelihood of heart disease of those with the least bisphenol A in their urine, and 2.4 times the diabetes risk. People with high levels of the chemical also had a higher chance of abnormal levels of three liver enzymes.
The scientists say their study shows a relationship, but does not prove that bisphenol A (BPA) is responsible for the higher disease levels. They are calling for more studies to be done to confirm what they have found.
Iain Lang, of the epidemiology and public health group of Exeter's Peninsula medical school, said the study was not a reason for people to stop buying canned food or plastic bottles. "I'm not changing my behaviour on the basis of this single study," he said.
Unhealthy habits, such as eating the wrong foods, smoking, drinking to excess and lack of exercise were the main causes of heart disease, he said. However, regulators will want to reassure themselves that there is no problem and the FDA and European regulators will be under pressure to act. In an editorial in the journal, Frederick vom Saal, from the University of Missouri, Columbia, and John Peterson Myers of Environmental Health Sciences, Charlottesville, Virginia, say the regulators should "follow the recent action taken by Canadian regulatory agencies, which have declared BPA a 'toxic chemical' requiring aggressive action to limit human and environmental exposures".
Until now, they say, the FDA and the European Food Safety Authority have chosen to ignore warnings in spite of "overwhelming evidence of harm from animal studies". A contributory factor may be "an aggressive disinformation campaign using techniques first developed by the lead, vinyl and tobacco industries to challenge the reliability of findings published by independent scientists".
David Coggon, professor of occupational and environmental medicine at the University of Southampton, said if the findings were corroborated, there would need to be more controls on exposure to the chemical. "If low-level BPA were confirmed to cause disease, there would be a need to review controls on sources of exposure to the chemical."
Professor Richard Sharpe, of the Medical Research Council human reproductive sciences unit at Edinburgh University, said it was important to exclude possible alternative causes of the raised heart disease and diabetes levels.
"If you drink lots of high-sugar canned drinks you will over time increase your risk of cardiovascular diseases and diabetes ... incidentally you will be exposed to more bisphenol A [from the can lining] ... it is obviously a priority that we design studies to provide this information before we label bisphenol A as the prime suspect," he said. At a glance
Bisphenol A is mainly used to make a clear plastic polycarbonate which will withstand high temperatures, and epoxy resins to line the insides of tin and aluminium cans to prevent corrosion from the food and drinks they contain.
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