Let's have a discussion about BPA

I ordered some Born Free bottles, but I'm wondering about Gerber freezer bags for storing milk. I haven't been able to find anything online about them yet. Is it just Hard plastic to worry about? thanks to whoever posted that link on the other thread.

 

Now I am doubting all plastics!!!
I am going to order a stainless steel water bottle for my 3 year old.
Should we not use plastic bowls and spoons? I never microwave their food but is it safe?

 

QUOTE(Nancy C @ Feb 10 2008, 02:19 PM) [snapback]615260[/snapback]
Now I am doubting all plastics!!!
I am going to order a stainless steel water bottle for my 3 year old.
Should we not use plastic bowls and spoons? I never microwave their food but is it safe?

The First years take & toss are fine to use. Also, look at the number on plastics. Stay away from 7... 1,3 & 5 are okay.

 

This link has a list of all of the safe bottles
http://zrecs.blogspot.com/2007/07/z-report...ycarbonate.html

as for storage bags, I know Medelas bags and everything are safe.

The clear plastics usually have BPA, unless otherwise stated. If the plastic is colored it is fine. Also, BPA leaches out over time, not just with exposure to heat and/or scratches.

 

My biggest question is this:

Does the BPA keep soaking out of the plastic after it is cooled? For example, if the bottle was in the dishwasher (obviously no formula in it) and then cooled to room temp, is it still putting BPA into the formula?

 

Has anyone contacted any of the companies that use BPA in there bottles and complained about spending money on their bottles and finding out they are unsafe to use? Just curious I was thinking of doing it and just wondered if anyone else has and what kind of response you have gotten. I stopped using BPA bottles awhile ago but I also had lots of safe ones. But I am hanging on to the bad ones (Evenflo) just incase there is a recall.

 

QUOTE(mystich @ Feb 11 2008, 09:05 AM) [snapback]615967[/snapback]
Has anyone contacted any of the companies that use BPA in there bottles and complained about spending money on their bottles and finding out they are unsafe to use? Just curious I was thinking of doing it and just wondered if anyone else has and what kind of response you have gotten. I stopped using BPA bottles awhile ago but I also had lots of safe ones. But I am hanging on to the bad ones (Evenflo) just incase there is a recall.


Great idea! Please let us know what happens if you are able to contact those companies. I only have three of the Gerber ones and the boys HATE them!

 

There have been lots of studies about BPA in plastics and it appears (from the research I've seen) that BPA does, indeed, leach out of the plastic no matter whether it's hot or cold. Washing in really hot water causes more BPA to become available, but some bottles leach lots of BPA right from the start. I don't know why - perhaps something in the manufacturing process. BPA is a chemical that helps very hard plastics stay stable, so it's found in the hard baby bottles, in adult sports bottles like Nalgene, and in some hard plastic baby toys.

One of the PPs wrote about avoiding all plastics, and whether we should worry about baby spoons and bowls. Personally, I DO worry about spoons and bowls and bibs and other things my kids put in their mouths, like toys. I try to buy the safer stuff when I can, but I realize it's impossible to avoid ALL sources of harmful chemicals. At first I assumed I'd have to spend tons more money to avoid BPA and phalates; I was surprised to learn that many of the major manufacturers (like Sassy and Nuby) make products from the better plastics, and they don't cost any more than the "bad" plastics. Oddly enough, the products aren't labeled that they're safer either.

I haven't found all that many websites or companies that sell only "safe" plastics... those without BPA, PVCs, phalates or vinyl. Here's the one I did find: http://www.thesoftlanding.com/

Trish

Oh - I did contact Dr. Browns and asked for a refund of the money we'd spent already on their bottles (wishful thinking, right?). The response I got was polite, told me that BPA had been proven safe in many tests, but that they were introducing glass bottles next year based on feedback like mine.

 

I left out my name and the person who responded but here is what I wrote to Evenflo
To: Parentlink
Subject: bottles

Hi, I am very concerned with the use of BPA in bottles lately with all the news coming out about them. I had about 40 of your bottles and have read they are unsafe to use with infants I have twins so we use lots of bottles on a daily basis. I am very disappointed to find out your bottles used BPA, but I feel I need to do what is safe and discontinue using your bottles until you put out a safer bottle. Are you going to be putting out a safer plastic bottle? Do you think there will be a recall or compensation for bottles that have used BPA.


Thank
you for your time, I appreciate any information




The response I got:





Hello,

Thank you for contacting Evenflo regarding the polycarbonate used in some of our baby bottles.

Polycarbonate is a common material for many products, such as baby bottles, blood oxygenators, and kidney dialyzers, because it is clear, has high heat resistance, is chemically neutral, and is shatterproof. BPA is also used to make the epoxy for dental fillings and for the linings of food storage containers and beverage cans. Polycarbonate is formed from two chemicals, one of which - Bisphenol-A-- or BPA.

The Food and Drug Administration regulates polycarbonate in the Federal statutes for food-contactable materials. It also approves medical devices containing polycarbonate components. The FDA considers polycarbonate bottles to be safe, as do other international government agencies, including the U.S. National Toxicity Program, U.K. Food Standards Agency, the European Commission's Scientific Committee on Food, the European Chemical Industry Council, the British Ministry of Agriculture, and the Japanese Ministry of Health Sciences, as well as medical institutions such as the Harvard Center for Risk Analysis.

Based upon the foregoing, Evenflo does not believe that the polycarbonate used in our plastic baby bottles poses any risk to human health. As an alternative, however, Evenflo does offer glass baby bottles for purchase. We are also introducing plastic bottles made of polypropylene plastic.

Please let me know if you have any additional questions or concerns.

Thank you for taking the time to contact ParentLink. Have a good day.


Senior ParentLink Representative
Evenflo Company, Inc.