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=__How has the Amount of Poisonous Toxins or Chemicals in Packaging Increase Over Years?__ =

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A gender-bending chemical that is found in the food packaging we use is linked to breathing problems in young babies, researchers have found. A study showed in pregnant mothers with the highest levels of bisphenol A in their bodies were twice as likely to have babies who suffer from wheezing in their first six months. Wheezing in babies can be a symptom of lung damage, asthma, bronchitis, allergies or an infection.

Alert: The chemical, used to harden plastics, is found in baby bottles Bisphenol A, or BPA, which is used to make harden plastics, is one of the world’s most widely manufactured chemicals and can be found in dozens of everyday items including baby bottles, CD cases and food and drink packaging. Because the chemical mimics oestrogen, many scientists believe it interferes with the way hormones are processed by the body. Although several animal studies have shown it to be safe, others have linked Bisphenol A to breast cancer, liver damage, obesity, diabetes and fertility problems. The latest U.S. study looked at the BPA levels of 367 pregnant women, with researchers at Penn State College of Medicine measuring levels of the chemical in expectant mothers in the 16th and 26th week of pregnancy.

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Ths old thanhey found had 99 per cent of women measurable levels of the chemical in their bodies – and those with the highest levels in their 16th week are more likely to have babies who wheezed at six mont women with the lowest levels. However, the study also found that high concentrations of BPA at 26 weeks and at birth were not connected to the condition. Some experts suggest exposure to hormone-disrupting chemicals causes the most harm during a crucial window of development early on in pregnancy, and believe women of child-bearing should try there best not to use products containing BPA.

Mother love: Some experts suggest women of child-bearing age should avoid products containing BPA

Elizabeth Salter-Green, director of the Chemicals, Health and Environment Monitoring Trust, said: ‘This new research adds further weight to the need to reduce our exposure to this chemical, particularly pregnant women. It is the foetus developing in utero that is most vulnerable to BPA exposures.’ Last year Denmark became the first country in the EU to ban BPA in packaging for food and drink aimed at under-threes, while the EU itself voted to ban it from baby bottles last year. Canada and three U.S. states have also introduced restrictions. Adam J. Spanier, lead author of the study, which was presented at a conference in the U.S. yesterday, called for more research into BPA.

Read more: [|http://www.dailymail.co.uk/health/article-1382525/Chemicals-food-packaging-linked-breathing-problems-babies.html#ixzz1l6AXGOWh]

The production and use of chemicals is fundamental to all economies all over the world. However, it is also recognised that chemicals pose risks that should be indicated throughout the supply chain. Many countries have developed systems for providing information on hazardous properties and control measures of chemicals aimed at ensuring their safe production, transport, use and disposal. Yet, those systems are currently not always compatible with each other and often require multiple labels and Safety Data Sheets for the same product. Consequently, companies involved in international trade need to follow multiple regulations regarding hazard classification and labelling depending on where they do business and users may see inconsistent label warnings and Safety Data Sheets for the same chemical. Therefore, the European Parliament and Council adopted [|**the Regulation on the Classification, Labelling and Packaging of Substances and Mixtures**] (CLP). It entered into force on 20 January 2009. The CLP Regulation will replace certain provisions of the directives related to the classification, packaging and labelling of dangerous substances ( [|Directive 67/548/EEC] ) and preparations ( [|Directive 1999/45/EC] ) after a transitional period. These Directives will be repealed on 1 June 2015. The Regulation incorporates the classification criteria and labelling rules agreed at UN level, the [|Globally Harmonised System of Classification and Labelling of Chemicals (GHS)]. It introduces new classification criteria, hazard symbols (pictograms) and labelling phrases, while taking account of elements which are part of the earlier EU legislation. The Regulation requires companies to classify, label and package appropriately their hazardous chemicals before placing them on the market. It aims to protect workers, consumers and the environment by means of labelling which reflects possible hazardous effects of dangerous substances. The labelling provisions take on board the red-framed hazard pictograms, signal words, hazard and precautionary statements provided for in the UN GHS, for example:

HARMFUL CHEMICALS

Eating fresh food, as opposed to packaged ones, can reduce your level of exposure to these toxins.
 THE GIST  As much as food-related choices can help limit the chemical burdens on our bodies, however, it is virtually impossible to eliminate exposures altogether.
 * Food packaging is a major route of exposure for people to two toxic chemicals: BPA and DEHP.
 * Eating mostly fresh foods and avoiding cans and plastic containers can drastically reduce the levels of these chemicals in our bodies.
 * A combination of shopping habits and legislation may be key to limiting human exposures to the ubiquitous chemicals.

[|Have you ever wondered why your food tastes so good?]
 * [|As BPA Concerns Rise, Can Companies Seek Alternatives]
 * [|BPA May Inhibit Pregnancy]

RELATED TOPICS  Plastic wrappers, food cans and storage tubs deposit at least two potentially harmful chemicals into our food, confirmed a new study. By cutting out containers, people can dramatically reduce their exposures to these toxins. The chemicals -- bisphenol A, or BPA, and a phthalate called DEHP -- are known to disrupt hormonal systems in the bodies of both animals and people, leading to developmental and reproductive problems, as well as cancers, heart disease and brain disorders. And both appear in a wide variety of food packaging materials. But when people in the new study avoided plastic and ate mostly fresh foods for just three days, the levels of these chemicals in their bodies dropped by more than 50 percent, and sometimes much more. "What this says is that food packaging is really the major source of exposure to BPA and DEHP," said Ruthann Rudel, a toxicologist at the Silent Spring Institute, a research and advocacy group in Newton, Mass. "The good news is that we provide some evidence that people can make everyday decisions about their kitchens and their diets if they want to reduce exposure to these compounds." These chemicals appear in a huge range of consumer products. DVDs, eyeglasses and cash-register receipts may contain BPA. PVC toys, medical tubing and pipes can hold DEHP. Previous studies have also found them in foods and food-packaging materials, including plastic wraps, plastic containers and [|the epoxy linings of metal cans]. To solidify the link from food packaging to human exposure, Rudel and colleagues altered the diets of 20 Bay-Area families, each with two adults and two kids. All of the households reported that they either drank from polycarbonate water bottles, dined out at restaurants, microwaved food in plastic containers, ate canned foods or frozen dinners, or used plastic storage materials -- all of which would suggest exposure to at least some chemicals of concern. During an eight-day study, the researchers took urine samples from participants on a nightly basis to look for evidence of both BPA and four types of phthalates. For a couple days at both the beginning and end of the week, families stuck with their normal diet. But for three days in the middle of the study, they ate only food that was prepared for them by a caterer who conformed to specific guidelines. The majority of food was fresh. Cans were not allowed. Food preparers avoided using plastic utensils or nonstick cookware. Food and drinks were stored in glass or stainless steel containers at levels low enough that the contents did not touch BPA-free lids. Even coffee had to be made in a French press or ceramic drip so that no plastic was involved. During the three-day intervention, normal levels of BPA in people's urine dropped by 66 percent, the researchers report today in the news Environmental Health Perspectives. The highest measured dropped by 75 percent. For DEHP, normal levels of certain breakdown products dropped by more than 50 percent, and maximum measured levels dropped by 95 percent. When the researchers looked at phthalates that show up in places like fragrances, glue and nail polish, but not in food packaging, they didn't detect any change at all during the study -- suggesting that food packaging was indeed the major source of exposure to BPA and DEHP. The findings align with recent work showing higher levels of BPA in canned foods than in fresh versions, said Arnold Schecter, a public health physician at the University of Texas School of Public Health in Dallas, who has pioneered a series of studies on [|chemicals in our food supply]. Scientists are concerned about the unknown and accumulative health effects of exposure to multiple toxic substances from many sources, Schecter added. Finding ways to lower levels of any chemical by any amount is encouraging. "Their study and ours are more or less pointing in the same direction with the conclusion being that we'll probably poison ourselves a little bit less if we use food not stored in BPA-lined cans or phthalate-containing materials," Schecter said. "It seems to me this is good news. From a public health standpoint, if we can reduce our levels of these chemicals, that's a good thing." As much as food-related choices can help limit the chemical burdens on our bodies, however, it is virtually impossible to eliminate exposures altogether. Many food-processing procedures, including cow milking, use plastic vats and PVC tubing. That's where policy comes in, Rudel said. Some countries have already banned BPA in cans and DEHP in food packaging. This kind of legislation may ultimately be the only way to keep these chemicals out of our food and our bodies. "Because we can't really shop our way out of the problem," she said, "I think it's most important to support efforts to replace these kinds of chemicals in food packaging with safer alternatives."    A new study has reported that eliminating packaged and restaurant food from the diet can substantially reduce exposure to certain estrogenic compounds that have been reported to increase risk of breast cancer. The study was designed to evaluate the contribution of food packaging to bisphenol A (BPA) and bis(2-ethylhexyl) phthalate (DEHP) exposure. BPA and DEHP are chemicals widely used in plastics and resins for food packaging. For example, BPA is used to line metal food and beverage cans. BPA and DEHP have been reported to be associated with [|endocrine disruption](estrogenic activity) in animal experiments and in some human studies. Exposure sources have been estimated for humans, but the relative contribution of dietary exposure to total intake has not been determined. The study was designed to estimate the contribution of food packaging to exposure by measuring BPA and phthalate metabolites in the urine of study participants before, during and after a non-packaged foods dietary intervention. The study, which took place in January 2010, included 20 participants in five families who self-reported use of canned and packaged foods. Participants initially ate their usual diet, then consumed only fresh foods (not canned or packaged in plastic and no restaurant meals) for three days, after which they returned to their normal diet. Evening urine was collected from participants over eight days and combined into pre-intervention, intervention period, and post-intervention samples.
 * [|Food]
 * [|Food Processing]
 * [|Food Unwrapped]

Urinary levels of BPA and DEHP metabolites were found to lowered significantly during the fresh foods intervention period. For example, average BPA was 3.7 ng/mL before the fresh food intervention compared to 1.2 ng/mL during the intervention period. The intervention reduced average concentrations of BPA by 66% and DEHP metabolites by 53% to 56%. Maximum BPA levels were reduced by 76% and maximum DEHP metabolite levels were reduced by 93% to 96%. The authors conclude that BPA and DEHP exposures were substantially reduced when participants’ diets were restricted to food with limited packaging. **Tags:**

[|BPA] [|breastCancerRisk] [|endocrineDisruptors]