Bisphenol A: What you need to know

Bisphenol A, or BPA, is a hormone-like chemical used in many plastics and lined cans so commonly used by consumers that nearly every American has been exposed.

The chemical is at the heart of worldwide scientific investigation and a debate over whether it is harmful to the very young.

U.S. government:

• The Food and Drug Administration does not recommend discontinuing use of products that contain BPA.

ON THE WEB: FDA Overview

• The journal Environmental Health Perspectives published a research article on urinary analysis from the National Center for Environmental Health and CDC that BPA can be detected in an estimated 95% of Americans.
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• The National Toxicology Program of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services released a report (pdf) in September 2008 concluding that there was cause for "some concern for effects on the brain, behavior and prostate gland in fetuses, infants and children at current human exposures."

• In Congress, Rep. Edward Markey introduced a bill that would ban BPA in food and beverage containers. It was most recently referred to the House Committee on Energy and Commerce June 10.

Risk assessment:

•Environmental Health Perspectives published commentary (pdf) analyzing how standards related to "Good Laboratory Practices" vary and how that affects the risk assessment of BPA.

• In the international community, the advocacy group Friends of Earth Europe published "Blissfully unaware of Bisphenol A" (pdf) in June, reviewing the science on the chemical and also urging a revisal of the risk assessment process.

Consumer info:

The non-profit Environmental Working Group has issued a number of reports and advice on BPA, including:

•Tips to Avoid BPA Exposure, with information similar to our recycling code guide at left.

•Timeline: BPA from Invention to Phase-Out, explaining the widespread use and the most recent government decisions and health reports to date.

•Survey of Bisphenol A in Canned Foods, reporting that BPA levels are unsafe in 1 in 10 servings of canned foods and 1 in 3 servings of infant formula.

•Guide to Infant Formla and Baby Bottles, comparing brands and summarizing the group's findings on BPA.

Environment California Research & Policy Center also issued a report (pdf) on toxic leaching chemicals in clear plastic baby bottles.