Health Hazards

By Susan Seliger

Here’s a BPA update. Just when you though it was safe to drink bottled juice and water and eat canned foods and go to the dentist, a new study from the Sept. 17, 2008 JAMA (the Journal of the American Medical Association) finds that death from heart disease may be another risk to add to the list. That risk list (from BPA found in hard plastic bottles and the lining of most food and beverage cans) already included diabetes, obesity, and hormonal changes that can produce breast and prostate cancer and neurobehavioral changes in infants exposed in the womb.

I know you’re worried about your money and might be thinking that buying organic and focusing on eating local, natural foods is a needless splurge in tough times. But this new study is a serious reminder that going green, especially when it comes to the the foods you eat, is not an indulgence. It will keep you healthy — and alive a little longer.

Here are some answers to your basic BPA questions. See for yourself if the fuss is justified. ANd there’s a useful list of other BPA articles at the end.

WHERE IS BPA FOUND?

BPA (bisphenol-A, an endocrine-disrupting chemical) is used in polycarbonate plastic (such as hard, colored water bottles and 5-gallon bottles used in water coolers) and the lining of most food and beverage cans. BPA can leach from the plastic into foods and liquids – and even more leaches when the container is heated or used and re-used.

BUT DOES IT REALLY GET INTO OUR BODIES?

Short answer: Yes. Nearly everybody in the U.S. seems to have BPA show up in their urine – which means it was in the body. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control found BPA in the bodies of 93 percent of the people they tested.

From the JAMA study:

“Widespread and continuous exposure to BPA, primarily through food but also through drinking water, dental sealants, dermal exposure, and inhalation of household dusts, is evident from the presence of detectable levels of BPA in more than 90% of the US population.”

BUT IS THIS LOW-LEVEL EXPOSURE REALLY DANGEROUS?

Short answer: yes.

Long answer from the JAMA study:

“Evidence of effects in animals has generated concern over low-level chronic exposures in humans…..“Bisphenol A (BPA) is one of the world’s highest production–volume chemicals, with more than 2 million metric tons produced worldwide in 2003 and annual increase in demand of 6% to 10% annually.1 Bisphenol A is used extensively in epoxy resins lining food and beverage containers and as a monomer in polycarbonate plastics in many consumer products. Widespread and continuous exposure to BPA, primarily through food but also through drinking water, dental sealants, dermal exposure, and inhalation of household dusts, is evident from the presence of detectable levels of BPA in more than 90% of the US population.”

“The potential for low-dose effects has added to the controversy about possible hazards and whether currently recommended exposure thresholds require revision.”

CONCLUSION:IS BPA REALLY A HEALTH RISK?

Short answer: Yes — exposure to BPA may lead to death from a variety of diseases – that could have been prevented by reducing exposure.

Long answer from JAMA:

““We found that higher BPA concentrations were associated with diagnoses of cardiovascular disease and diabetes.”

“Higher BPA exposure, reflected in higher urinary concentrations of BPA, may be associated with avoidable morbidity in the community-dwelling adult population.”

“Using data representative of the adult US population, we found that higher urinary concentrations of BPA were associated with an increased prevalence of cardiovascular disease, diabetes, and liver-enzyme abnormalities. These findings add to the evidence suggesting adverse effects of low-dose BPA in animals.”

FOR MORE information on BPA, check out these stories:

JAMA STUDY: Association of Urinary Bisphenol A Concentration With Medical Disorders and Laboratory Abnormalities in Adults

BPA in Dental Plastic: Are the Fillings in your Teeth Dangerous?

BPA: The Dangers of Canned Food May Be Greater Than Plastics

BPA: 5 Tips to Avoid the Dangers in Plastics

Where to Find Baby Bottles Without BPA — and Formula and Pacifiers, Too

Where to Find BPA-Free Baby Bottles and Sippy Cups

BPA: Plastic Products That Are BPA-Free

Where to Find Safe Plastics without BPA Chemicals

Your BPA Questions Answered

Photo credit: Susan Seliger

By Susan Seliger

Scientists have found that one of the biggest sources of nasty and dangerous bacteria in streams and seawater — from Florida to Maine and clear out to California — is from dog waste. No fellow dog lovers, all that poo is not great fertilizer for the grass. It is disease-carrying waste that washes into the streets after a rain and works its way through the storm drains and into your local waterways.

Green-up cleanup tip:
It’s simple: just pick up after your pet. What a good dog, what a good dog. Pat Pat.

Green Products:

1. Here’s a new product to take care oF your dog’s business: A Pooper Scooper box –made out of a 100% recycled material that biodegrades in a landfill in about 20 days, according to the manufacturer: Skooperbox.

2. For a variety of pooper scooper devices you can buy, from a few bucks on up, check out this pet supplies site: Pet Food Direct.

3. And for biodegradable plastic bags you can use for the task, check out BiobagsUSA or Ecoanimal.

Photo credit:http://www.flickr.com/photos/danagraves/54026470/.

By Susan Seliger

Will your cell phone really do you in? The evidence is not all in. The well-respected Swedish National Institute for Working Life reported (in the largest study on the issue) that they may cause brain tumors. But the Dutch Health Council reviewed international research and found no such links as did a study published in the British Medical Journal.

Still….brain tumors?!? Why mess around? Especially for phone calls that consist largely of shouting, “Can you hear me now?”

So here are 5 things you can do right now that definitely won’t hurt you and might just keep that little brainpan of yours safe from killer cell-phone radiation (no promises regarding the Loch Ness monster and space aliens).

1. Put your phone on speaker – and keep it away from that cute little ear (because the earbone (am I getting too clinical here?) as you know, if you had any singing ability, is connected to the brainbone.) But make sure you go outside because the rest of us do not want to listen to your lame excuses for why you’re running late.

2. Use the Bluetooth earpieces – that’s even safer than speaker phone. Who cares if people think you’re talking to yourself as you walk along the street – if they think you’re crazy, maybe they’ll keep their distance.

3. Make fewer calls and keep them short – so you can save energy, too. Maybe then you’ll only have tiny tumors.

4. Text instead – and practice doing it at full arm’s length. Holding your arms out in front of you while texting is a neat isometric exercise and will build muscles at the same time – all right, very little muscles, but still…

5. Check your phone’s SAR Rating — Next time you buy a phone (if you last that long – just kidding) choose one with a low SAR rating. Honestly I do not know what that means – OK, Specific Absorption Rate. But really can manufacturers actually measure how much radiation your body will absorb? Do they know how thick (or thin) your skin is? Anyway, all you need to know is BUY LOW.

Which, in the current economy, is not a bad philosophy for the rest of your life as well.

FOR MORE INFO TO SAVE YOUR LITTLE BRAIN:

* Check CNet for a list of the 10 phones with the lowest SAR rating.

* University of Pittsburgh Cancer Institute – on the potential dangers

* And if you want some more tips, check out The Consumerist which may or may not have some serious advice – I leave that up to you.

Illustration credit:

mooreslore.corante.com/…/computer_interfaces/