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Bisphenol A May Earn 'Toxic' Status in Canada
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by Terri Potratz | October 17, 2008 at 02:56 pm
86 views | 4 Recommendations | 2 comments
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Bisphenol A, or BPA, may earn the title of "toxic" in Canada after evidence for its' harmful effects continues to mount. BPA is found in hard plastics such as water bottles, baby bottles and other plastic containers, as well as within the lining of tin cans.
"It is concluded that bisphenol A be considered as a substance that may be entering the environment in a quantity or concentration or under conditions that constitute or may constitute a danger in Canada to human life or health," officials from Health Canada and Environment Canada wrote in Friday's issue of Canada Gazette, the federal government's official newsletter.
The departments concluded it is appropriate to apply a precautionary approach to the risk, given that toxicology and metabolism data from limited human studies and experimental research on animals that suggested "potential sensitivity" in infants and fetuses.
BPA was banned from baby bottles about six months ago, and most people hope that a ban on BPA from other consumer products is soon to come. This announcement that BPA will be officially listed as a toxic ingredient is a precursor to such a ban - with input from Canadian citizens and scientific research, Health Minister Tony Clement can now legislate new regulations on the chemical product.
Exposure to Bisphenol A has been linked to heart disease, diabetes, liver problems, cancer and reproductive issues. But not everyone agrees that it is a harmful substance:
A ban on bisphenol A would be an overreaction, said Steven Hentges, a spokesman for the the American Chemistry Council, an industry group that represents plastics makers."That science has been reviewed by government bodies and independent scientific bodies around the world," said Hentges. "And they generally support the conclusion that products containing trace levels of bisphenol A are not a significant health concern."
The language Hentges uses implies that BPA is indeed harmful, but there is no 100% conclusive evidence to prove this yet - hence terms like 'generally,' 'trace' and 'not significant.'
If the Canadian federal government goes ahead and formally declares tomorrow that BPA is a toxic and hazardous substance, they will be the first country in the world to do so.
Related NowPublic.com Stories:
Action Against Bisphenol A Grows
FDA Ignores New Bisphenol A Health Risks
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Most RecentMost Recommended Comments (2)
at 20:36 on October 17th, 2008
Great story!
But what a disaster! Nice work, whoever-you-are-who-made-bisphenol-A.!
How does it even happen, anyway, that these substances not only exist but have become dispersed so widely.
Or was bisphenol A always a byproduct of something else.
at 22:57 on October 17th, 2008
Terri Potratz, I like this story. It's good stuff.