What is Bisphenol and how to avoid it

Bisphenol A, also known as BPA, is a chemical used to manufacture all kinds of polycarbonate plastics, food or beverage cans, shopping receipts or bank statements, plastic containers, CDs... It is a contaminating substance that, according to a vast number of publicly funded scientific studies, primarily in Europe and the United States, can cause effects on hormonal balance at very low levels of concentration.

This substance is already detected (in blood and urine) in the vast majority of the population of the developed world. Its presence in the products we use daily is so common that a study by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) stated that more than 90% of Americans have traces of this substance in their bodies, although generally below the “tolerable daily dose.”

However, health authorities do not agree on what that tolerable dose is. For example, in France, this substance has been banned since 2013; in the rest of the EU, they banned its use in baby bottles in 2010 but not in toys, and Spain expanded this ban to also limit the use of bisphenol in toys, where a concentration of 0.1mg/m³ cannot be exceeded.

The commercial industry, evidently, fights in favor of bisphenol and downplays the numerous studies that assert that the adverse effects of this substance are significant.

The molecular structure of BPA mimics the structure of natural estrogens; in other words, it has the capacity to disrupt the endocrine system. BPA therefore constitutes what is known as an endocrine disruptor. (take a look at our post on this topic).

Some of its adverse effects include:

• Behavioral changes: Hyperactivity, aggression
• Diabetes and obesity
• Early puberty
• Reduction in sperm count
• Prostate cancer
• Breast cancer
• Chromosomal alterations
• Brain damage
• Impairment of immune function

The main way it enters our bodies is through food, especially due to contamination from materials that are in contact with food, whether during processing or in packaging and food containers, such as cans that are very frequently lined on the inside with materials containing Bisphenol A, from which it passes into the food product contained within them.

Although it is true that bisphenol A is in many everyday objects, we can take some measures to avoid it: avoid canned goods and opt for other materials such as glass, do not heat food in plastic containers, do not reuse bottles, and pay close attention to labels:

The recycling code that indicates the type of plastic used for its manufacture at the bottom of the container (resin identification code) can help us identify its presence. Those that may contain more traces of Bisphenol A are those with numbers 7, 3, and 10. The plastics that do not contain BPA, phthalates, or expandable polystyrene are those that carry recycling codes with numbers 1 (PET), 2 (HDPE), 4 (LDPE), and 5 (PP), according to the Special Unit for Children's Environmental Health.

Although the presence of BPA in cosmetics is not as obvious as it is in the food industry, at Herbera, we do not use any packaging that contains Bisphenol A or any other endocrine disruptor. And from here, we call on the Spanish authorities to ban this substance, just as they have done in our neighboring country, and you, what do you think?

#herberaseplanta

If you are interested in the topic, we invite you to take a look at the FODESAM website, the Fund for the Defense of Environmental Health.

• http://www.fondosaludambiental.org/
• Ban on the use of Bisphenol A in baby bottles: http://www.elmundo.es/elmundosalud/2010/11/25/noticias/1290712681.html.
• Spanish limitation for BPA use: http://www.redaccionmedica.com/secciones/sanidad-hoy/sanidad-limita-pero-no-prohibe-el-bisfenol-a-en-juguetes-4329.
• Exposure to low doses of Bisphenol A and shortening of fertile age: http://www.biolreprod.org/content/early/2010/08/20/biolreprod.110.084814.