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As a mother, hearing the latest news report brings on thoughts like “Oh, great something else I have to worry about.” Many people have heard the latest buzz in the news over chemicals leaching from plastic containers, most notably in baby bottles and sport bottles. The chemical offender this time is Bisphenol-A (pronounced bis-fen-all) which is a chemical widely used in polycarbonate plastic to give it that clear hard shatterproof consistency. That includes the majority of baby bottles on the market today. As you browse the aisles of any baby supply store it seems to be the only option.

Why does it matter?

The Environmental Working Group as well as other independent researchers have done some rather extensive studies on the effects of BPA in animals. The results we not full of good news. Bisphenol has estrogenic properties which, in animal tests has shown to cause a bevy of health problems such as an increase in prostate and breast cancer, genital abnormalities in male babies, a decline in semen quality in men, early onset of puberty in girls, metabolic disorders including insulin-resistant diabetes, obesity and neurobehavioral problems such as Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder.

Babies are more sensitive to BPA and it’s effects than adults and the scary part is that we don’t really know what the long term effects are. This is, understandably, a frustrating fact for parents.

Bisphenol-A has been used in plastics for decades. So there is some arguments being tossed around to the contrary. Not to mention bottle makers argue that small amounts of BPA are harmless. They stand behind the fact that the chemical has been tested extensively and the FDA maintains that it does not pose a risk to human health.

What do I do? If you’ve read the research and want to make changes towards a BPA Free baby bottles there are things you can do. It is true that many of the new BPA Free marketed baby bottles are a little more costly. But there are BPA Free alternatives available that won’t break your wallet.

* If you’ve just purchased polycarbonate baby bottles, call the company directly. There is a possibility they’ll let you return them for a different product.

* Check out some of the new products on the market like Thinkbaby and BornFree. They offer a variety of BPA Free plastic bottles and sippy cups.

* Switch to glass. This is sometimes not the most economical option but there have been great improvements to the glass bottle products making them less likely to break. Some even offer a silicon sheath to keep them protected. Evenflo and Dr Browns have a glass alternative in stores now.

* Use powdered formula. Even though we talk about BPA leeching from the bottles themselves, the highest levels of BPA are found in prepared liquid formula.

If you decided to continue using polycarbonate bottles there are a few things you can do to reduce the amount of BPA leeched into formula or other liquids:

* Don’t microwave liquids in the bottle and avoid putting boiling liquids in them.

* Hand wash bottles rather than running them through the dishwasher to reduce wear and to avoid high temperatures.

* Don’t use harsh detergents if possible. Harsher chemical cleansers can wear on the bottle surfaces.

* Do replace them if they look worn, cracked or scratched.

It’s a confusing subject. Is it legitimate? Just a scare tactic to get us to spend more money? Do I really need a fancy cup or bottle to be safe? What about tableware and canned goods? There are a million questions. Please leave a comment or send your questions to
SafeMama @ Gmail.com with the subject “GNMParents BPA Question” and I’ll return with some frequently asked questions and answers.

by Kathy Scoleri

[tags]kids, children, baby, babies, infants, safety, bottles, plastic, Bisphenol-A, danger, care[/tags]
Photo graciously provided by -cr, through a Creative Commons license, some rights reserved