Pregnant women exposed to a common chemical found in plastics are more likely to have daughters with aggressive and hyperactive behaviours, suggests a new study that tested two-year-olds.
via Globe and Mail
This appears to be a very solid study correlating BPA exposure in women with aggressive behaviour in young girls, but not boys. Hormones are very sex-specific in action, so the fact that a potent estrogen mimic affects girls more than boys is not surprising.
Bisphenol A, of course, used to be found in those hard plastic bottles (remember Nalgene?). Since these were used primarily by affluent eco-conscious people, this was the first frontier of protest and action. Also, remember the recent brouhaha (again, you had to be rich and eco-conscious) about Sigg metal bottles and Bisphenol A in the lining?
But, as this EWG page points out, can liners have been proudly sporting Bisphenol A without much consumer fuss. It would seem to me that these are the applications that need to go away first. Canned goods are sometimes considered an inferior product, so I guess there is not enough mainstream support here.
I would go one step further and completely ordain the phase out of all Bisphenol A containing products in food/drink applications. We know now that it can leach out at room temperature, not just under heated conditions. But, you try arguing with the Bisphenol A fan page set up by the American Chemistry Council! You will come out feeling sorry for this maligned chemical and all those poor companies that toil heroically to produce it for you.
hmm, I did read the fan page. They seem to repeatedly state that there is no risk. Are they just blatantly lying? How does that work?
it is called “manufacturing uncertainty”. There is a whole segment of environmental consulting called product defence. That is all they do. See this interview of David Michaels, who wrote a book about this practice, called “Doubt is their Product”.