Chemical in plastics can lead to several health problems, new study says:
"(knoxstudio.com)
* - There is strong evidence that minute amounts of a chemical ingredient in plastics that most people are exposed to every day can harm reproduction and brain development, a government scientific journal will report Thursday.
* Two university research scientists writing in Environmental Health Perspectives, a peer-reviewed journal published by the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences, report that 94 of 115 scientific studies they examined had found that small amounts of the chemical bisphenol-A, or BPA, can cause harmful effects in laboratory animals, including hyperactivity, learning difficulties and other behaviors that resemble attention-deficit disorders in children.
* Other studies that expose tissue cells to BPA at amounts as low as .23 parts per trillion - which is the lowest that current technology can measure the chemical - have found that it mimics the female sex hormone estradiol, which is used in birth-control pills, said Frederick vom Saal, a research scientist at the University of Missouri and lead author of the article.
* BPA is used in hard, clear polycarbonate plastics like baby bottles, water bottles, food containers and the lining of soda cans.
* Other tests conducted in Europe and Japan found similar levels in blood and urine, indicating that human exposure to the chemical is almost universal in industrialized countries, vom Saal said.
* Steve Hentges, director of the American Plastics Council's BPA division, said the article ignored some studies that found the compound did not cause health effects and included other studies, such as the studies of cell tissue, that are not good indicators of possible human health effects.
* 'The sum of weak evidence does not make for strong evidence,' Hentges said.
* Environmental Protection Agency spokeswoman Suzanne Ackerman said the agency 'will certainly carefully consider the results of this new study and other scientific research literature to help us set priorities for the assessment or reassessment of chemicals.'"
Robt; I always took the stand that plastics, nylon, and other synthetics are harmful. An aspect that this report don't touch on is that these synthetics break down into a gas that I believe is as harmful or worse than secondary cigarette smoke. My supporting evidence is anecdotal, but look at all the folks that were getting sick because buildings were being constructed tighter. They stopped the drafts but increased the need for air exchange ventillation systems!
Decomposition has the same effect on available air as burning does. The difference is the concentration (ppm) of the gases given off. Every fireman know how toxic burning synthetics are. If the don't they should!
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