For decades, the federal government and chemical-makers have assured the public that the hormone-mimicking compound Bisphenol-A is safe. This chemical is found in baby bottles, aluminum cans and hundreds of other household products.
But a recent investigation by the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel has found that studies and research are heavily funded by the same companies that produce the chemical. The article states that 80% of academically and government-funded research found that bisphenol-A is harmful in laboratory animals. Most of the industry-funded studies found there was no harm.
Last week, a panel commissioned by the National Toxicology Program released a report finding bisphenol-A to be of some concern for fetuses and small children. The report stated that adults have almost nothing to worry about.
Recommendations from the report could be used by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and other regulators to assess federal policies on how much bisphenol-A is safe and may have huge ramifications for the multibillion-dollar chemical industry.
The panel said it considered more than 700 studies by university scientists, government researchers and industry-funded chemists. It picked the work it felt was best and threw out the rest. The Journal Sentinel found that panel members gave more weight to industry-funded studies and more leeway to industry-funded researchers.
What Is Bisphenol-A?
Bisphenol-A is a chemical compound containing two phenol functional groups, belonging to the phenol class of aromatic organic compounds. It is widely prepared and sold, and various important polymers/plastics are made from it. Bisphenol-A was detected in the urine of 93% of participants in a recent study.
Harmful side-effects to bisphenol-A exposure:
Breast cancer
Testicular cancer
Hyperactivity
Low sperm counts
Miscarriages
Other reproductive failures
Bisphenol-A was first synthesized by A.P. Dianin in 1891. It was investigated in the 1930s during the search for synthetic estrogens. At that time, another synthetic compound called diethylstilbestrol was determined to be more powerful than estrogen itself, so bisphenol-A was not used as a synthetic estrogen. In the 1950s scientists discovered the chemical could be used to make polycarbonate plastic and some epoxy resins to line food and beverage cans.
Its current uses are as a primary monomer in polycarbonate plastic and epoxy resins. Bisphenol-A is also used as an antioxidant in plasticizers and as a polymerization inhibitor in PVC. Polycarbonates are widely used in many consumer products, including sunglasses, CDs, water and food containers, and shatter-resistant baby bottles. Some polymers used in dental fillings also contain bisphenol-A, while epoxy resins containing the chemical are popular coatings for the inside of food cans.
