02.14.10
Chemicals, Humans and Daily Living
The last blog post examined some ways that chemicals and particularly those in plastics harm animal life, both on land and in the sea. This post will examine how certain chemicals harm humans. During my reading on this subject in the last week or so, one thing became very clear to me. Human and animal health is directly linked to the health of the environment. That seems like such an obvious statement, but oftentimes humans would like to think of environmental problems as just nature or animal problems. But when chemicals are involved, what affects animals also many times directly or indirectly affects the health of humans as well.
I read several articles on the “Great Pacific Garbage Patch” which went into more detail about how the effects of tons of garbage in the Pacific Ocean is poisoning or killing the wildlife. The really sad thing is that there seems to be no quick feasible way to clean it up because it involves several countries, is very far from land and just gets complicated. This will take a lot of concentrated effort on everyone’s part including governments, advocacy groups, scientists and engineers to name a few, not to mention the money involved. But the chemicals leaking into the ocean from this garbage eventually makes its way into some of the fish/seafood we eat which makes its way into our bodies. Some pregnant women have been warned in the past not to eat certain fish because of the levels of certain chemicals. The ole food chain quandary sometimes gets really complicated. You’ll find several articles on this subject on http://www.treehugger.com and http://planetgreen.discovey.com. One program in particular that is taking a proactive stance in research and is taking positive actions to help clean up and prevent future ocean littering is Project Kaisei. Read about their good work at http://www.projectKaisei.org. Their work gives me hope that there is a solution. They are researching how to use this garbage to recycle into fuel of some kind. Through them we all can help with the research and clean up by helping fund the effort.
The websites noted above present much information about the chemicals that make their way into our bodies, not just through the ocean garbage dump but in our own homes, in every day living. Over this last decade, discussions, research and concerns have continued to rise about the harmful affects of certain plastics, or the chemical compounds making up certain plastics. These are the ones we are in contact with the most and which this blog will concentrate.
Questions began to arise about the chemical compounds of some plastics back in the 1980’s and continued into the new decade and century. Finally, recently after many studies, disagreements between agencies, researchers, scientists, industry personnel, advocacy groups, and others that had invested interest on one side or the other, the FDA made an announcement which denounced their previous finding earlier in the decade about bisphenol A (BPA). The FDA agency does now find ‘reason for concern’ about bisphenol A. However, the FDA took no further action. The statement itself was good and encouraging that more research will take place. But even so, bisphenol A or BPA is still in hundreds of products we use in everyday life.
That’s not to say that all plastics are harmful. Some plastics are safe and certainly useful. From my reading, one type of plastic used in many products proves to be non toxic in our daily use of it. It is named polypropylene. It is one of the few plastics that have no harmful occupational or health hazards during the manufacturing process as well (which is rare). Since the packaging of plastic products are not required to name the type of chemical compounds used in the product, how can we know what products we buy are made of this safe plastic? You will not know in the store. But you can either take down the phone number or website and contact the company and ask. Or you can buy the product and call before you unwrap or use the product to find out what it is made of, which is what I did last week. My bowls and tops had gotten so misplaced, borrowed or whatever that I needed to replace them so that I could send my husband to work with lunch that had a sealed top and could be warmed in the microwave. Having read that heating plastics is suspected to be one of the ways that BPA is leaked into our food and bodies, I called before I used. I purchased Glad Ware Containers with their “most interlocking lids ever.” The package said they were microwave, dishwasher and freezer safe. When I called, the Glad representative stated the lids were made from polypropylene and the containers were made from Terephthalate which is another plastic compound that meets the FDA regulations for food containers and storage. (Regulations. U.S. FDA (1998) approved the use of PET as components of polyethylene phthalate polymers intended for use in contact with food in accordance with the conditions prescribed in 21 CFR part 177.1630.) Glad has on its website a declaration of safety and non use of BPA in their products including sandwich bags, plastic wraps, trash bags as well as the food containers.
After reading some of the literature regarding concerns about the leakage of potentially harmful plastic compounds the most widely known one, bisphenol A, there is still reason for everyone to be concerned until it is proven without a doubt non-harmful to animals and humans.
BPA is used in all kinds of everyday products including CD’s, baby bottles, sippy cups, lining in cans containing canned foods, water bottles, medical supplies, literally thousands of products we use everyday. Researchers at the CDC found that BPA was found in 93% of urine samples taken in a study of over 2500 participants. The levels varied somewhat with men showing 2.6 micrograms per liter, women with 2.9 and children between ages six to eleven showing a measurement of 4.5. The debate is ongoing that BPA does or does not accumulate in our bodies. The people that think BPA is not harmful say that the chemical leaves the body through the urine, therefore it doesn’t cause problems. The questions remain: does all the BPA leave the body or does it accumulate somewhere in the body? If so where and what are the lingering affects? Researchers have stated that BPA in low amounts have been harmful to lab animals and assume the same is so with humans.
Other researchers have found through tests with animals that BPA is suspicious or related to heart disease, complications in breast and prostrate cancer treatments, fertility problems and others. The FDA seems to be specifically concerned about how BPA affects infants and young children. Canada has taken the step to ban and remove BPA from baby bottles. Many manufacturers and retailers in the USA have voluntarily taken products off the shelves that contain BPA.
So while the jury is still out and the research still underway on BPA and other harmful plastic compounds, what do we do in every day life to care for our children and ourselves? Below is a list that can get us thinking and started. I will be doing these from now own, wish I’d known about such things when my children were young.
1. When in doubt, don’t use it. If you have a non plastic alternative, use it.
2. Contact the company and get their take on their products, then check the reputation of the company regarding violations of regulations, etc. The internet is a wonderful tool for this.
3. Use as little plastic as possible. Prevention on the front end is always better. Even if it is safe regarding human use, the disposal and recycling efforts of some plastics are not finely tuned. Much ends up in landfills (some say up to 22% or more of landfills are plastics) for millions of years to come – or in our oceans to cause havoc on the wildlife there and eventually making it back to our dinner table. Tons of other plastics just get thrown on roadways, parks, etc. where it stays forever until a good hearted human comes along and cleans it up. At least if it is an aluminum drink can littered in the park, it can be retrieved and easily recycled.
4. Advocate for better labeling of non-food products so we know what we are buying before we buy it.
5. Be on the safe side and buy glass baby bottles. Triple check the type of plastics in your childrens toys, especially teethers, rattles, etc. that will for sure go into their little mouths. Some harmful plastic are even in some childrens books that are bound in plastic. If you don’t know or can’t find out about safety, don’t buy it.
6. Aside from helping yourself and your family, get more involved. Some suggestions:
a. Celebrate Earth Day April 22.
b. Celebrate World Environmental Day June 5,
c. Celebrate World Ocean Day June 8.
d. Adopt a Mile clean up on a road near you.
e. Adopt a Stream, Creek, Lake, River, Bay, Ocean – any body of water will most likely have a clean up program. If not, get your community involved and start one.
d. Reduce, Reuse, Recycle, and Reclaim energy.
e. Save energy and water.
f. Live as green as you can, garden, alternative energy, hybrid vehicles, etc.
g. Give, aside from giving of yourself, give money to valuable and needed earth friendly causes.
h. Teach your children and grandchildren the importance of taking care of the earth. Teach them about animals, nature and recycling to start.
i. Pick at least one of these to do, preferably more.
j. Inform others of risks and needs regarding our earth.
k. Enjoy Your Earth!
