‘BPA-free’ plastics replaced one health risk with another

New BPA replacement may be even more dangerous

“BPA-free” is becoming the most useless term in the English language — right up there with “FDA approved” and “government intelligence.”

You can’t walk into the supermarket these days without seeing food packages and water bottles with labels promising they’ve ditched bisphenol A (BPA) for good.

And it sure took them long enough. I’ve been warning you for years that this plastic hardener has been linked to everything from diabetes to birth defects to cancer.

But now scientists have proven that the chemical that’s replaced BPA may be even more dangerous for your health.

And if you have heart problems or know a woman who is expecting a baby, this is one warning you’ll want to hear.

New name, same risks“It’s like jumping from the frying pan into the fire.”

That’s what one researcher had to say about bisphenol S, the toxic chemical that’s taking the place of BPA in thousands of products we use every day.

When most of us see “BPA-free” or “No BPA” on a label, we think it’s an easy way to protect our families and keep ourselves safe.

But it looks like that may not be true — not by a longshot.

You see, we know that BPA can actually mimic estrogen in your body and can attack everything from your heart to your brain. It’s even been linked to certain types of breast and prostate cancer.

But it turns out BPS is incredibly dangerous, too — maybe even more so.

Two years ago researchers in Texas found that one part per trillion of BPS– the equivalent of one grain of salt dropped into an Olympic-size pool — is enough to start killing your cells.

And another study found that BPS can cause a potentially serious heart arrhythmia.

But as far as the risks of BPS are concerned, this latest research out of UCLA may be the clincher.

In a new study just published in Endocrinology, researchers looked at what happened to zebrafish when they were exposed to BPS.

Now a study on fish might not sound all that convincing — but scientists use zebrafish in research all the time because they’re transparent. And that lets them closely monitor embryos as they develop.

And it turns out just a little BPS was all it took to cause serious problems in brain development, and even trigger permanent damage to reproductive systems.

That probably sounds awfully familiar, right? These are the exact same issues scientists have been warning about with BPA for years!

BPS isn’t a better mousetrap. They’ve just replaced one poison with another!

And it’s not exactly like the FDA has found BPS to be safe, either. These guys have spent years denying the risks of BPA, so don’t expect a warning on BPS any time soon.

It’s obvious by now that we have to go further than just shopping for these so-called safe “BPA free” plastics. Everyone, especially pregnant women and people with heart trouble, need to steer clear of both BPA and BPS.

Here are some easy ways to do that:

Only use glass or stainless steel for food storage.
Never microwave anything in plastic containers. They often have BPA and BPS that can leach right into your food.
Trash the plastic water bottle and replace it with a stainless steel one. A good selection can usually be found in a store’s camping section.
Be especially careful with canned foods. Some companies are ditching plastic liners altogether, but the best way to play it safe is to choose fresh or frozen foods when you can.

On top of that, there’s another sneaky way we can be exposed to both BPA and BPS — and that’s by handling those thermal receipts from stores. The ink can contain either one of these toxins and it can be absorbed right through the skin!

Not taking a receipt, of course, is the best way to avoid this exposure. And since many stores now give you the option of emailing one, you don’t have to touch it at all.

If that’s not an option, just snap a photo of the receipt with your phone and trash the receipt right away.

To Your Good Health,

Jenny Thompson

Sources:
“BPA-free plastic alternatives may not be safe as you think” Sandee LaMotte, February 1, 2016, CNN, cnn.com