FDA Bans BPA From Baby Bottles

After a storm of controversy over the health effects of bisphenol-A (BPA), an industrial plastic, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) says it can no longer be used in baby bottles and sippy cups. But public health experts are still concerned that we continue to eat plenty of BPA in canned goods and absorb it (and related toxins) in our fingers from handling the thermal paper used for retail receipts.

BPA is an endocrine disrupter that interferes with the body’s use of estrogen. It has been associated with a number of health problems ranging from metabolic disease to reproductive issues, and the chemical can be found in many plastic products used for food packaging and liquid storage.

In his latest video blog, David Dausey, Ph.D., of Mercyhurst University says that the FDA’s decision to announce a BPA ban on infant beverage containers is too little too late.

“Manufactures and the chemical industry were getting such bad press from their use of BPA in baby bottles that they voluntarily decided to stop using it years ago,” Dausey said. “Now that no one is using BPA in baby bottles, the FDA finally gets around to banning it.”

He calls the FDA’s recent move a “symbolic gesture” and is calling on the FDA to get to work passing real laws that force chemical manufacturers to be more responsible in producing safe products for human use.

“The last Federal toxic chemical law in the United States was passed in 1976,” Dausey said. “Since then, more than 80,000 chemicals have been brought to market.”

You may be wearing some of the potentially toxic chemicals Dausey wants the agency to review. They include perfluorinated chemicals, stain repellants in clothing that may impair immunity. He’s also worried about the fire retardants called polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs), a family of chemicals linked to hyperactivity and learning disorders in youngsters.