Baby's breath

Dear Reader, I've talked a lot about bisphenol A (BPA) here in the past. It's a seriously toxic substance to your health. And I never drink or eat anything out of plastic because of it. I don't even touch cash register receipts now in my efforts to stay away from it. (Yes, those shiny receipts are hiding BPA.) But I need to mention it again. Because a recent study I came across reinforces why BPA is so important to avoid. It also touches upon a topic I wrote an entire book about. One that has personal significance to me: asthma. For those of you who don't know, I had asthma as a child. And by changing my diet, I was able to prevent future episodes once and for all. I have been able to do that same thing quite successfully with many patients. The entire program is outlined in my book, The Allergy and Asthma Cure. But suffice it to say that eliminating environmental toxins is a big part of the solution. We tend to take the outside assault on our bodies and immune systems in stride--as if there's nothing we can do about it. But that's just not true. And if more people realized how much damage these chemicals could potentially do to us, I guarantee they would take greater measures to stay away them. Which, of course, brings me back to BPA. There has to be some reason that asthma rates have skyrocketed over the past 30 years. Diet is one smoking gun. And this new study shows that exposure to environmental toxins--and BPA in particular--also plays a big role. Researchers investigated whether exposure to BPA in the earliest years of life could contribute to wheezing and asthma risk among children. To do this, they estimated the BPA exposure of more than 500 children from a long-term birth cohort study. According to urine samples, almost 90 percent of the children had detectable amounts of the chemical in their bodies by ages 3, 5, and 7 years. The researchers adjusted for secondhand smoke exposure and other risk factors linked with asthma. But BPA exposure was still associated with as much as a 50 percent higher risk of wheezing and asthma--even at lower levels. And it's not the first study to reveal a link like this, either. Previous research has linked BPA exposure to respiratory issues--not to mention obesity, diabetes, and behavior problems. That's the main reason why the FDA finally banned BPA in baby bottles and infant cups. (Unfortunately, long after our European neighbors made this move.) But even with these restrictions, there are still plenty of sources of BPA still out there. As I said, cash register receipts are one of them--and so are the linings of food cans. I can't stress this enough. Awareness of BPA is on the rise--but you have to remain vigilant nevertheless. Especially if you're a parent. So next time your cashier asks if you want your receipt, decline. It only takes 10 seconds for BPA from your receipt to transfer to your skin. And crumpling it can speed up this process. (It's just as easy to keep track of purchases online these days, anyway.) While you're at it, you should also avoid plastic containers, especially those that feature the numbers 3 or 7. Eat with glass, porcelain, or steel dishware--especially when drinking and eating hot food and beverages. And absolutely cut back on canned food consumption. (This is something you should be doing anyway--processed "food" isn't my idea of food in the first place.) With so many environmental toxins in our everyday life, being able to eliminate even a mild source could save lives. So please...do it for the children. Until next time, Dr. Fred