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For several years now, moms have been making the choice they thought was best for their little ones: Steering clear of bisphenol-A (BPA), the toxic substance in plastic that may mess with the endocrine system, disrupting hormones, and causing a variety of short- and long-term health concerns for our children including asthma, cancer, infertility, low sperm count, heart disease, liver problems, and ADHD. But apparently, even if you've been incredibly conscious and checked every sippy cup and water bottle to ensure it's marked "BPA-free," it may not be enough!
According to a new paper the journal Environmental Health, which notes that various plastic products marked "BPA-free" are not nearly as safe as we thought.
Researchers tested 50 resuable BPA-free plastic containers and found that some products leached hormone-altering chemicals (even before they were exposed to heat from a dishwasher or microwave!) and more than three-quarters of the containers tested released synthetic estrogens. So, so unnerving.
Not to mention incredibly frustrating, considering that we think we're doing everything we can to protect our children by doing the research before going shopping for sippy cups, only registering for the BPA-free baby bottles, keeping certain plastics our kids use out of the dishwasher or microwave, etc. But news like this it makes it seem like even our best efforts are all for naught. It makes it seem like even our best efforts aren't enough to protect our kids, and that's nothing short of extremely aggravating.
Here, the specific plastic products moms will want to avoid, given these recent test results:
AVENT baby bottles CamelBak blue sippy cups Born Free baby bottles Green to Grow baby bottles Evenflo baby bottles Weil Baby sippy cups and baby bottles
More from The Stir: BPA-Free Bottles & Sippy Cups Might Not Be Safer for Kids After All
You can also check out Mother Jones for more on what the study found.
For the wellness of our kids and to save us all continued headaches (and much more), fingers crossed findings like these help put pressure on plastics companies to up their safety standards once and for all.
How do you feel about these findings? Will it change what brands you buy?
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