7 easy ways to cut your exposure

Source: google.fr via Tristana on Pinterest

I received another great email from Fresh this morning, and wanted to pass this information along. 

Bisphenol-A (BPA) is a hormone-disrupting chemical that lurks in food can linings, plastic food and beverage containers, and a slate of other consumer products.

It has been linked with serious effects on human health, from recurrent miscarriages in women and neurological changes in children to erectile dysfunction and hormonal changes in men. Chemical industry lobbying has kept regulators from banning the use of BPA, but there is good news. A 2010 study* found that BPA levels in five families dropped dramatically (by 60% on average) after just three days of not eating canned goods and food in plastic packaging.

Here are 7 more steps you can take to reduce your exposure to BPA:

Avoid drinking out of plastic bottles. Use unlined stainless steel ones instead.
Avoid canned foods and those that are sold in plastic containers. Buy products in glass or cardboard “brick-packaging” for a BPA-free alternative.
Choose dried beans instead of canned ones, and stick with fresh or frozen fruits and vegetables. If you can’t avoid canned fruits, vegetables, or beans, rinse the contents well before serving.
Store leftovers in glass containers instead of plastic ones. Never microwave food in plastic containers or while covered in plastic wrap. Use glass or ceramic containers instead.
Don’t take receipts or wash your hands after touching one. The thermal paper used by many retailers for receipts contains high concentrations of BPA.
Check recycling numbers on plastics. Types 3 and 7 are likely to contain BPA, so avoid these.
For Parents with Young Children: Unfortunately, many BPA alternatives are still being tested for safety and it is difficult to determine what products are truly better. For developing brains and bodies, cut to the chase and avoid plastics altogether.
If you feed your infant formula, choose the powdered version instead of the liquid kind.
Use glass or stainless steel containers for bottles and sippy cups.
Avoid plastic toys, especially items that will be put into mouths.
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{Take Action} to make BPA go away

I received an email from Fresh this morning (new thinking about what we are eating) and thought I would pass the information along.  There is an easy way to potentially help make a big difference in removing BPA from our packaging, our bodies, and our environment by signing a petition for Walmart to phase out BPA from their products.  Here is some information from their email, and a link to one of my previous posts about BPA:

Bisphenol-A (BPA) is a toxic chemical that is making us sick. It leaches into us from plastics, paper coatings and canned foods. 90% of us carry measurable amounts of BPA in our bodies. 90% of us—that means it’s everywhere, practically unavoidable.

Canada and the E.U. have already banned the chemical for use in baby bottles. But our government hasn't banned it (yet!), so let’s change the industry, starting with Walmart. They are a retailing giant with enormous influence. If Walmart commits to eliminating BPA, the whole industry will be forced to change.

BPA disrupts our hormonal system even in very small doses, and has been linked to miscarriages, erectile dysfunction, heart disease and diabetes. For more information on the harmful effects of BPA, read here. Safer alternatives are available; there’s no excuse for continued use of BPA.

A recent report gave Walmart an F rating for their lack of efforts to phase out BPA packaging, yet Walmart has pledged to take a leadership role in environmental stewardship. Let’s tell Walmart to stop the corporate greenwashing—it’s time to get serious about removing BPA from their products. If they commit to phasing out BPA, it will effectively force the entire packaging industry to change.

Click here to sign the petition for BPA-packaging alternatives at Walmart.

For more information about the effects of toxins in everyday products, I recommend reading Slow Death by Rubber Duck: The Secret Danger of Everyday Things

This book is about two Canadian friends/environmentalists who exposed themselves to everyday products and monitored the toxin levels in their bodies. 

Key concerns raised in Slow Death by Rubber Duck:
• Flame-retardant chemicals from electronics, pyjamas, and household dust polluting our blood.
• Toxins in our urine caused by leaching from plastics and run-of-the-mill shampoos, toothpastes and deodorant.
• Mercury in our blood from eating tuna.
• The chemicals that build up in our body when carpets, paint, and upholstery off-gas.

As a useful book for parents and consumers, it goes beyond scare tactics to provide solutions that we can all apply to our daily lives.

More reading about BPA:

The Breast Cancer Fund

Healthy Child, Healthy World