MH Magazine: Is Your Bottled Water Safe?
Check Your Bottled Water
You may be more exposed to a common chemical than you should be
When you throw a can of food into your cart, you're probably not thinking about how much bisphenol A (BPA) you'll consume.
BPA, a common chemical, is found in all sorts of everyday containers, such as certain plastic water bottles, including baby bottles, and the lining in most cans. And while the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has deemed it safe, studies have linked it to health problems like diabetes and heart disease.
Now a University of Missouri-Columbia study has found that people may be consuming more of the chemical than initially believed. After feeding five adult monkeys an amount that is eight times higher than the estimated safe dose—and 400 times higher than the FDA estimates you're exposed to—they measured active BPA in their blood.
Researchers found that the levels were lower than those usually found in people. That means for our levels to be higher, we'd have to consume even more BPA—and that dose is considerably higher than the estimated safe amount. Some monkeys process BPA similar to how humans do.
How can you avoid BPA? Ditch the cans in favor of fresh food, or switch to glass bottles for your baby. For water, Nalgene bottles are now BPA-free and easy on the wallet.
-Kasia Galazka
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