stay away from bpa

This weekend I was trying to explain to a friend why I had been trying to avoid canned food since I had learned that BPA levels where high in the lining of cans. As I heard myself talking, I wondered if I had really turned into a crazy, eco-obsessed person. Maybe I had become too compulsive?

Before I had a chance to even give it much thought, I saw an article in today's issue of USA Today. It confirmed and validated my inclinations to avoid BPA wherever it may be.

This article was noteworthy for a few reasons:

- For the first time, a large, population-based study links BPA to heart disease and diabetes in humans.

- Some scientists are saying the study shows that BPA "is too dangerous to allow in consumer products, especially those used by babies and pregnant women." Not surprisingly the FDA still claim it is safe.

- However, the National Toxicology Program expressed concern that BPA alters behavior, the brain and prostate gland in children, both before and after birth.

- Most studies regarding BPA risks used animals or cells to test safety. This new study measured people's levels and found connections to heart disease and diabetes.

The article is an easy read, so definitely check it out. I especially loved the last part:

"BPA is so ubiquitous — used in everything from "carbonless" paper receipts to water pipes — that consumers can't shop their way around it, Myer says. The only way to protect vulnerable children, he says, is for industry to stop using the chemical. "It's mind-boggling," Myers says. "We can't ask moms to be chemical engineers when shopping for their kids, and that is what the current system forces them to be."