A can of Campbell's Condensed Chicken Noodle Soup, a Tupperware container, a Nalgene water bottle (made before 2008), many baby bottles, Chef Boyardee containers and many vegetable cans. These are all used to contain a popular food or liquid product... but they are all also a potentially dangerous risk to our health.
Bisphenol-A (BPA) is found in all of these products and many people are unaware of this potential health risk. BPA is defined by PBS as, "a manufactured chemical commonly used in the production of polycarbonate plastics, which has been found to affect the development of animals (even in minute doses) by acting like the hormone estrogen" (PBS 1). Polycarbonate plastics are often used in food containers because a polycarbonate, according to Steven G. Hentges, the Executive Director of Polycarbonate/BPA Golobal Group at American Chemistry Council "…is a lightweight, high-performance plastic that possesses a unique balance of shatter-resistance and optical clarity as well as high heat and electrical resistance" (Hentges 1) This means a polycarbonate containing the chemical BPA possesses traits that are very useful for consumers, and therefore it is used in products many Americans use daily, including many plastic microwavable food containers, plastic water bottles, baby bottles, soup cans and canned vegetable cans; these days, BPA is almost impossible to avoid. BPA, however, has also been proven to have many bad effects on humans such as "growth in prostate cancer cells…and other reproductive problems" (Chan 5). In order to reduce the health problems caused by BPA, Americans should refuse to buy products that include the chemical, putting pressure on the large food companies to eliminate BPA from the products they sell. Companies will respond by removing BPA from the products they produce if consumers refuse to buy certain products.
A common point of confusion is how the BPA actually gets into the food product since it is only used in the container. In an interactive graphic on the USA Today Website, Jerry Mosemak and Alex Newman show how BPA "leaches" into the food or liquid inside of the container that contains BPA. The way this happens is through the use of old bottles, heat and acidity (Mosemak and Newman). As we use plastic containers or bottles more and more the more the BPA leaks out of the bottle and into the food or liquid and then into your body. For example, in a perfect world a can of ready to microwave Chef Boyardee Beef Ravioli that someone grabs out of his or her pantry has no BPA in the ravioli. Once you pop off the metal lid and place it in the microwave and hit start, BPA begins to leach out of the container and into the food. By microwaving that container (even though it is designed to be used in the microwave) the beef ravioli now contains a high amount of a very dangerous chemical. An alternative to microwaving in the container that the ravioli comes in is to take the ravioli out and microwave it in the ceramic bowl. In a perfect world, this would make that beef ravioli BPA free. The truth is, our world is not perfect. Chances are during the shipping process or manufacturing process the can was exposed to some heat, which caused the BPA to move from the can or bottle into the food or liquid. Another example is a baby bottle, used to feed infants. A baby bottle is used more than once and is typically cleaned with heat in the dishwasher or used to hold warm liquid. The contact with the heat causes the BPA to break off of the bottle and into the liquid inside, which the baby then drinks.
Think of the Campbell's Condensed Chicken Noodle Soup, Chef Boyardee, baby bottles, Campbell's Soup, or Nalgene water bottles (made before 2008) that your kids love and eat or use daily. All of those products contain BPA. Despite the known danger of BPA, according to Barrett, "Data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention indicate human exposure to the chemical is widespread, with approximately 95% of Americans estimated to have detectable levels of BPA metabolites in their urine" (Barrett 1). 95% of all Americans have a trace of BPA: that's a scary fact, given that it has been proven to cause serious health problems. According to Lyndsey Layton, a journalist for The Washington Post, "More than 200 studies have connected BPA to a range of health concerns, including cancer and developmental and reproductive problems" (Layton 1). There have also been studies that prove BPA caused cancerous tumors in female rats. As Julia R. Barrett, a science writer and editor for Environmental Health Perspectives, explains, "Prenatal exposure to bisphenol A (BPA) is linked to cellular and structural changes in the mammary glands of adult rats and increased susceptibility to chemically induced cancer. New research now suggests a possible mechanism of action for this increase in cancer susceptibility via altered protein expression patterns in rat mammary gland tissue" (Barrett 1). Barrett does note that it is "unknown" if the chemical would have the exact same effect on humans (Barrett 1), but other evidence shows that BPA does have a negative effect on health. Liz Szabo from USA Today reports that, "Men with higher levels of BPA, or bisphenol A, were two to four times more likely than others to have problems with sperm quality and quantity" (Szabo 1). In the same article, Szabo explains that men with significantly high levels of BPA have been seen to be less fertile. These health problems that BPA causes are very serious and often cannot be fixed. According to Wilma Chan, an assemblywoman for the state of California, "Bisphenol-A has been linked to the following complications: Reproductive damages, Growth in prostate cancer cells, Down's syndrome, Cancer, Obesity, ADHD, malfunctions in the thyroid system" (Chan 5). These are all very serious health issues that no human would want to increase their risk of, no matter how good the food tastes.
Where exactly is BPA? What products contain high levels of BPA? Is there a "safe" level of BPA to consume? These are very popular questions among consumers that are crucial to answer with true information. Many food companies will skew numbers or facts to make their product seem ok and safe. The truth is, there is no safe amount of BPA. In my opinion, there is never a safe amount of a chemical as dangerous as BPA; however, according to National Workgroup for Safe Markets the safe amount of BPA is 77 parts per billion (ppb) (No Silver Lining 9). Many popular foods have much more than 77 ppb making them harmful to the human body. One example of a product that has a dangerous amount of BPA is Del Monte Green Beans. Del Monte Green Beans are canned green beans, sold in most grocery stores and consumed by many people every year. According to Noel Brinkerhoff of AllGov.com, Del Monte Green Beans hold the record for most BPA found in a food product with 1,140 ppb which is 14 times the safe amount (Brinkerhoff 1). 14 times more than the safe amount, to me, seems unbelievably dangerous and does not seem like it should not be consumed by any human. The FDA needs to notice these dangers and set a regulation on BPA. Another product is the popular Campbell's Condensed Chicken Noodle Soup. This is another product that is very popular in America and yet contains a dangerous amount of BPA. Consumer Reports says Chicken Noodle Soup contains 54.5-102 parts per billion of BPA (What We Found 1). The level is set as a range, because as noted earlier, the level of BPA released depends on what your can has been exposed to; still, half of the range is over the safe limit. A final example is Chef Boyardee Beef Ravioli produced by ConAgra. Michael Finney of ABC Local News reports that Chef Boyardee by ConAgra has 261 ppb of BPA (Finney 1). That is almost 3 times the safe amount.
All three of these products are made by well-recognized and successful companies. Americans seem to trust food companies just based on their name, but after deeper research, clearly some of the most popular food brands are selling items with scary amounts of BPA. According to Chan, BPA can lead to bad effects even with small amounts consumed. She writes about two studies which showed that small amounts of BPA have significant effects in the human body, "One study showed that male mice had dramatically enlarged prostates and reduced sperm production in adulthood when exposed to low levels of Bisphenol-A in utero. Another experiment showed that females exposed to small doses of Bisphenol-A in the womb reach puberty early" (Chan 5). These studies should be wake-up calls to us about how unsafe BPA is.
With the research that proves that BPA is a dangerous chemical, why have huge food companies not banned the chemical in their products yet? The answer to that is the food companies are too big and too powerful to let their products be changed. There have been several bills trying to ban or reduce the use of BPA, and they have all failed. According to Scott Faber, vice president for federal affairs for the Grocery Manufacturers Association, "We will not support food safety legislation that bans or phases out BPA from any food and beverage container…'" (Layton 1). Faber is threatening that the Grocery Manufacturers Association will not support any bill that tries to reduce BPA. The legislators know that without support from such a strong organization in the food industry, the bill would have a very slim chance to pass. Faber must protect his company; he is not worried about our nation's people.
In an ABC Sacramento story by Nannette Miranda, expectant mother Melissa Walthers describes the battle to ban BPA between consumers and large companies as "It's (the battle to ban BPA) a David and Goliath fight" (Miranda 1). The battle is huge, wealthy food companies (Goliath) versus the average American (David). In a video related to the story, it explains that bills to ban BPA are just too hard to pass, and that despite the "…citing more than 200 studies linking BPA to health issues like cancers and neurological problems," the large food container companies have the power to convince legislators otherwise (Miranda). The David vs. Goliath battle is one that is very familiar to many people, and we all know that eventually the smaller man won. The battle to ban BPA is not impossible, it will just take persistence by consumers in boycotting products that contain BPA.
The only way to truly avoid BPA is to buy products that have "BPA Free" logos on them. But, there is a catch there also. In a Consumer Reports Magazine study that tested two products that were in BPA Free containers and BPA was found in both products. This test should make consumers scared that they are being lied to, or not being told the complete truth about a very serious chemical. It is clear even if a "BPA Free" label, the consumer cannot be 100% confident that the metal or plastic container does not contain BPA (Alternative Packaging 1).
What can be done to change the insecurity of customers? Customers can demand an FDA regulation that requires companies to place a label on their product if it contains BPA, or is BPA free. BPA free products should be tested by the FDA for legitimacy. This would eliminate the insecurity that customers are buying what they think are BPA free products but in reality the products contain BPA. Another option is to demand a complete ban of BPA in all food products. If consumers demand change, companies will respond. As consumers we must demand change by not purchasing products that contain BPA in order to put pressure on companies to remove BPA from the products they sell.
As stated earlier, the fight between consumers and large food companies will be long and challenging, but I believe eventually us "Davids" can win. People must refuse to buy baby bottles, canned vegetables, canned soups, Tupperware containers, and other food products which contain BPA in order to put pressure on the large food companies. Some companies have already responded to consumer worries. Nalgene, a popular reusable water bottle company, depends on a loyal customer base to keep business flowing. In 2008 studies were released that contained evidence that Nalgene bottles contained BPA. The effects of BPA were explained and consumers reacted. Since Nalgene is such a popular brand of reusable water bottles, consumers were scared. Consumers were questioning Nalgene and demanding that Nalgene assure customers that all bottles are BPA free. Nalgene reacted very quickly and redesigned the water bottles without BPA and with a flashy, up-and-coming label, "BPA free". Nalgene also redesigned the company website with a section titled, "Information on BPA". In that section users can explore popular questions about BPA in Nalgene bottles such as, "Do metal bottles contain BPA? Are polycarbonate bottles safe? And Why is Nalgene transitioning from polycarbonate to other materials?" (Information on BPA 1). Nalgene also offers a link to the FDA's statement to Nalgene about the worry of BPA in the water bottles. In that statement, the FDA states, "We have determined that the dietary exposure to BPA is low (3.7 ppb), the level that is orders of magnitude below the levels known to cause toxic effects in animals" (Statement from the FDA…dated January 29, 2008 1). This statement means that Nalgene bottles were found to have a "dietary exposure" of only 3.7 ppb which the FDA deemed low and not harmful enough not to ban the bottles (Statement from the FDA…dated January 29, 2008 1). Even without a ban from the FDA, Nalgene took the consumer's worries into consideration and took BPA out of their bottles completely. This is a great example of how consumer choice can change the actions of a large company. Consumers demanded change from Nalgene and Nalgene responded in a very respectful, open and helpful manner. Consumers now must stand up to other companies, to name a few, ConAgra (Chef Boyardee and many other products), Campbell Soup Company (Campbell's Condensed Chicken Noodle Soup), and Del Monte (Del Monte Canned Green Beans).
Why is this important? What will happen if we don't fix this problem? The ban of BPA is a crucial health danger facing America today. It is important to stop this potential danger now and not allow more and more products to be produced with BPA. As parents I am asking you to protect yourself, your children and the people in your community, refuse to buy products that contain BPA. Stand up to the "Goliath sized" food companies and demand change. Spread your knowledge about BPA and view on the use of BPA to your community and start to place more pressure on companies for change. It is possible to still get delicious Chef Boyardee Beef Ravioli, and flu-soothing Campbell's Condensed Chicken Noodle without the dangerous BPA infested containers. If we don't fix this problem more products will continue to be produced with containers that contain BPA and health effects will eventually be shown. The more BPA contaminated products released will lead to the now potential health problems to be shown in many humans. I do not want to see a day when our bodies are being affected heavily by an issue that is so easily avoidable, such as BPA.
