Bisphenol A-free bottles
Just wanted to give a heads up to the bottle-feeders out there...
Read an article today in the Chicago Tribune about polycarbonate bottles as opposed to the polyethylene bottles that babies use and the Bisphenol A that poses health risks according the National Toxicology Program...
http://featuresblogs.chicagotribune.com/features_julieshealthclub/2008/0...
And I know that the research has been around a bit and such and I've been warned about in the past, but the interesting aspect of it is leaching of breast milk...
Here's a breakdown of manufacturer and plastics used in their bottles:
http://zrecs.blogspot.com/2007/07/z-report-bisphenol-in-polycarbonate.ht...
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We've currently started using Dr Browns bottles with the vent system, but they're not coming out with the polyethylene bottle until May 2008. In the meantime, we'll probably switch to the glass bottles so that we can still take advantage of the venting system.
Glass Bottles
My 2-cents -
We use Evenflo which seem to work amazingly. The twins love 'em. I know BornFree is another brand but super expensive. If your into saving money, go with Evenflo. I think BornFree actually also makes plastic bottles that are Bisphenol A free.
thanks elquesogrande for
thanks elquesogrande for that great information!
we were able to find some dr. brown glass bottles with the venting system, so we'll be using that as we begin to incorporate bottles into the process. it's sort of scary how much is still unknown about the long term effects of bisphenol-A leaching and such...
but, thanks for the feedback and information! we appreciate it.
Canada Banning Bisphenol-A Baby Bottles
Interesting timing on this subject - I randomly bumped into the following article this morning. It looks like Canada will be banning BPA in all baby bottles (but not in other food supply areas).
April 18, 2008
OTTAWA - The government announced today that it intends to ban the import, sale and advertising of baby bottles with the controversial chemical bisphenol A, the widely used chemical found in plastic baby bottles, water bottles and food containers.
Health Minister Tony Clement and Environment Minister John Baird made the announcement in Ottawa.
"I am announcing today that if no new relevant or compelling information comes forward during the public consultation period, it is our government's intention to ban the importation, the sale and the advertising of polycarbonate baby bottles," Clement told an audience that included mothers and their children.
The proposal now kickstarts a 60-day consultation period.
The announcement comes after a lengthy review of the chemical under the government's Chemicals Management Plan. Recent research has shown that bisphenol A is an estrogenic hormone disrupter that causes reproductive damage and may lead to prostate and breast cancer in adulthood. Babies are particularly vulnerable, since most traditional plastic baby bottles leach bisphenol A into the milk they drink.
"Although our science tells us that exposure levels to newborns and infants are below the level that cause effects, we believe that the current safety margin needs to be higher. We have concluded that it is better to be safe than sorry," Clement said.
The proposal does not include banning the sale, import and advertising of water bottles, Clement said, only baby bottles.
Several major retailers - including Canadian Tire, Sears Canada, Wal-Mart Canada, Hudson's Bay Company and Rexall Pharmacies - have already pulled products with BPA from their store shelves in anticipation of today's announcement. Retailers say demand is drying up for baby products with the controversial chemical.
The plastics industry has petitioned Ottawa to keep bisphenol A on the market maintaining the chemical is a safe product and poses no health risk.
http://www.canada.com/montrealgazette/news/story.html?id=deed5ab1-c1e2-4...
Bisphenol-A (BPA) Homework
I came out of the chemical industry and did a ton of homework on
Bisphenol A (BPA) when my kids were born. The biggest problem with
BPA is that it is an estrogen mimic - essentially giving anyone who
injests the substance an unregulated dose of a female hormone. Let's
put that in the "not a good thing" category even though there is no
conclusive scientific evidence that BPA is a bad thing to put into
your kids.
Really - there is no conclusive evidence...making this a
scientifically correct answer. That said, there is no way I want my
kids ingesting an unregulated estrogen mimic. Kind of the difference
between being intelligent and showing some wisdom.
BPA is used as a plasticizer - allowing producers to mold plastic to
the shapes and flexibility they desire. BPA is stable in most plastic
bottles unless the plastic is heated and/or when the bottle holds a
liquid for an extended (probably weeks or months) period of time.
Extended direct contact with liquids allows BPA to slowly leach out.
My opinion is that Dr. Brown bottles should be safe enough unless you
microwave or excessively heat the bottles. We chose to not store
liquid formula in the bottles and to serve the formula at room
temperature. The benefits of using those vacuum-free bottles seemed
to outweigh the pain of having to use glass. Hopefully the company
gets some non-BPA versions out soon.
The biggest area where BPA seems to enter kids' food supply appears to
be through canned foods. Most cans are lined with a spray-on plastic
that (surprise) is made malleable by adding a plasticizer. The FDA
does not require companies to report what plasticizer they use, but a
high % use Bisphenol-A due to its efficiency. That means the little
bit of BPA in the can liner is leaching into the food while it sits on
a shelf. Not much, mind you, but these little doses of BPA can add up
over each meal and over a lifetime. My opinion is that it is less
important to keep BPA related plastic bottles away from your kids and
more important to understand the impact of BPA in canned goods.
There is really not a lot of GOOD data out there on BPA directly
impacting the physical development of children; so it comes down to
collecting the scattered studies and coming to your own conclusion.
Mine is that BPA is not a great substance to feed your kids, but that
it does not mean that all plastic is bad. Even plastic containing
some BPA is going to be OK as long as it is handled correctly.
(Some...but not all.)
'Just a little more BPA info from a Dad with little kids!
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