While shopping in a big box warehouse yesterday, an elderly man serving samples of a brand name veggie-fruit juice drink was touting the product’s heart-health and anti-cancer properties to anyone passing by.
That made me think about how marketers are going all out to tap into the health consciousness of modern American families.
What struck me next was the irony of what could be lurking inside that otherwise innocent looking can.
Yes, the juice may contain our daily servings of fruit and vegetables, but what's not listed on the label could mean you are getting more for your money than you think.
Just one can could offer you or your family member a super-charged dose of the industrial chemical BPA or bisphenol A, according to recent research.
So what’s the big deal? Is BPA really something worth worrying about?
Well, some scientists think so. They are concerned about BPA because the chemical can mimic the hormone estrogen.
Previous lab studies have shown high levels of BPA, classified as a “hormone disruptor” that upsets the normal sexual development and infertility of animals.
There are also cancer, diabetes, obesity and immune system concerns.
BPA is found in the epoxy resins used to coat the inside of food and beverage containers ranging from soup, vegetables and juice to meat and baby formula, and of course, in clear polycarbonate bottles.
Several studies have shown that at least some BPA from can linings leach into the foods they hold.
BPA was added to canned packaging to prevent consumer risk of food poisoning. Without some type of lining, metal cans corrode allowing microbial bacteria to contaminate the food.
The jury is still out on BPA. The question is, what’s worse, the illness or the cure?
BPA, which has been used in food production for the last 35 years, may have helped eliminate some food-borne illnesses while having given rise to others.
In 2011, Harvard School of Public Health researchers found that after eating canned soup, people have dramatically higher BPA exposure than people who ate the same amount of freshly prepared soup. Each group was tested after consuming soup for five days in a row.
In fact, a couple of hours after eating the canned soup, researchers recorded BPA levels in study participants’ urine as being about 12 times higher than those who had consumed the freshly prepared soup.
Lead study author Karin Michels said that she and her colleagues were ”surprised at the magnitude of the BPA elevation” since less dramatic increases were found after people drank directly from polycarbonate water bottles.
While the Harvard study, published in the Journal of the American Medical Association confirmed canned food is a BPA source, it didn’t address the question as to whether BPA has negative health consequences.
Even at the dramatically increased BPA levels, the study participants were well within the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) “safe” range.
The North American Metal Packaging Alliance, Inc. (NAMPA), the Washington DC trade organization, stands by BPA as being perfectly safe.
Shortly after the JAMA-Harvard study was published, NAMPA Chairman, Dr. John M. Rost, issued a statement calling the study a “misrepresentation.” He says the research, in fact, substantiated that BPA is quickly excreted from the body from urine and therefore does not pose a health risk.
If BPA is truly excreted quickly from the body, it is a little troubling to explain why BPA was found in 9 of 10 cord blood samples collected from minority newborns in the United States, Canada and Europe.
In this study, the Environmental Working Group in partnership with Rachel’s Network, commissioned laboratories to analyze newborns’ umbilical cord blood.
Collectively, the laboratories identified up to 232 industrial compounds and pollutants in these babies, finding complex mixtures of compounds in each infant.
In Sept. 2011, The Breast Cancer Fund issued a report on 12 canned soups and pastas like Spaghetti-Os, which primarily are marketed to kids and contained BPA.
Topping the list was Campbell's Disney Princess Cool Shapes with 148 parts per billion. The average level across all 12 cans was 49 parts per billion, ABC news reported.
As part of its Cans Not Cancer campaign, the Breast Cancer Fund called on canned food manufacturers to replace BPA with something safer. The campaign generated 70,000 consumer letters to Campbell.
Last March, Campbell’s made big news when it said it will phase out BPA linings in its cans, although the company has not announced when the phase-out will begin or what the company plans to use instead of BPA.
Campbell’s move came as the U.S. EPA was poised to decide whether to ban the chemical's use in all food and beverage packaging. French lawmakers decided late last month to uphold a ban on BPA in all packaged foods.
The Canadian government declared BPA toxic in 2010, based on concern about possible risk to fetuses and babies.
On March 30, 2012, the EPA rejected a petition from environmental groups that would have banned all BPA use in food and drink packaging, saying there was no compelling scientific evidence that the chemical is dangerous.
However, federal scientists are continuing to study the issue.
If you are concerned about BPA, there are brands that don’t use the chemical. Check out the list at Inspiration Green.
Lynette Summerill is an award-winning writer and Scuba enthusiast living in San Diego, CA with her husband and two beach loving dogs. In addition to writing about cancer-related issues for EmpowHER, her work has been seen in newspapers and magazines around the world.
Sources and Consumer Information:
”Consuming Can Soup Linked to Greatly Elevated Levels of the Chemical BPA” Harvard School of Public Health New Release. Nov. 22, 2011. Todd Datz. Access at:
http://www.hsph.harvard.edu/news/press-releases/2011-releases/canned-soup-bpa.html
”BPA in canned foods: Should you worry? ABC News. Katie Moisse. Sept 21, 2011. Accessed online 16 July, 2012 at:
http://abcnews.go.com/Health/w_ParentingResource/bpa-canned-foods-worry/story?id=14563600#.UARYQ3DR1l1
”NAMPA Statement In Response to JAMA Letter on Soup Survey.” North American Metal Packaging Alliance, INC. press release. November 21, 2011. Michelle Lancaster.
”BPA and Other Cord Blood Pollutants.” Environmental Working Group. 2007-2012. More information at:
http://www.ewg.org/minoritycordblood/BPA-cordbloodpollution
”Cans Not Cancer campaign”. The Breast Cancer Fund. Accessed information at:
http://www.breastcancerfund.org/big-picture-solutions/make-our-products-safe/cans-not-cancer
EPA’s Existing Chemicals Programs: Managing Chemical Risks; Bisphenol A. Access information online at:
http://www.epa.gov/oppt/existingchemicals
Reviewed July 17, 2012
by Michele Blacksberg RN
Edited by Diderique Konig