Consumer Reports Warns of BPA Canned Food Risk
Bisphenol A in Soup, Vegetables, Baby Food is Safety Issue for Kids
Nov 3, 2009
It just got harder to eat a safe, healthy diet.
Consumer Reports has released a new study that finds danger in some canned food. Based on extensive sampling, they found that the cans containing canned soups, baby food, juices and other staples such as canned green beans contain a potentially dangerous chemical called BPA (Bisphenol A). BPA is used in a thin, invisible plastic lining of the cans, not the actual metal. Ingesting too much BPA could represent a particular risk for babies and small children.
According to a Consumer Reports study issued in November, 2009, BPA has been shown to be linked to adverse health effects including reproductive abnormalities, heightened risk of breast and prostate cancers, diabetes, and heart disease. The impact of this chemical has been studied on animals.
BPA was found even in some canned foods labeled "organic," and others labeled as "BPA-free.” Of course, it is not listed in "ingredients."
BPA is commonly used in the manufacture of clear plastic bottles and food-can liners. While concern over its potential health risk has caused BPA to be restricted in Canada and by a handful of American states and municipalities, the US federal government has not yet restricted the use of BPA in food packaging. Consumer Reports is calling for a review of BPA guidelines by the Food and Drug Administration.
Food Safety and Canned Soups, Canned Foods: What to Avoid
In testing three different samples of various foods, Consumer Reports found that canned greened beans and canned soups had the highest levels of BPA, specifically Del Monte’s Fresh Cut Green Beans Blue Lake brand (ranging from 35.9 parts per billion to 191 parts per billion). Also notably higher in BPA than other tested canned foods were Progresso Vegetable Soup and Campbell’s Condensed Chicken Noodle Soup. These all contained from nearly two to three times as much BPA levels as other popular canned foods such as canned corn, chili, tomato paste and corned beef, which had an average of 32 parts per billion.
Consumers can, of course, minimize the risk of possible BPA in canned soup by making homemade soup.
Children at Risk from BPA in Canned Food?
Dr. Urvashi Rangan, Director of Technical Policy, at Consumers Union, nonprofit publisher of Consumer Reports, said, "Children eating multiple servings per day of canned foods with BPA levels comparable to the ones we found in some tested products could get a dose of BPA near levels that have caused adverse effects in several animal studies."
Consumer Reports ran special tests on two popular children’s foods. Drawing from their findings, consumers should:
- Buy the powered, not the liquid form, of Similac Advance Infant Formula. Similac Advance Infant Formula in its liquid concentrate form, sold in a can, averaged 9 ppb (part per billion) of BPA, but there was no measurable trace of BPA in the powdered version.
- Use juice boxes, not cans, of Nestle Juicy Juice. Canned Nestle Juicy Juice averaged 9.7 ppb of BPA, compared to measurable levels in juice boxes.
Avoid Eating BPA from Canned Foods
Until the FDA passes new regulations on BPA, think twice about eating a diet that relies on canned foods; seek alternatives. Consumer Reports suggests:
- Choose fresh food whenever possible.
- Consider alternatives to canned food, beverages, juices, and infant formula.
- Use glass containers when heating food in microwave ovens.
Food Safety: Choose Fresh or Frozen First, then Plastic Over Cans
Consumer Reports didn’t investigate every single brand of canned food but it did test three different samples of each item for BPA. It found that different brands of the same food varied. And, importantly, it found that most—but not all—kinds of foods have far less BPA when packaged in plastic containers than the same thing in a can. For instance, there was no measurable BPA in StarKist Chunk Light in a plastic pouch, compared with a small amount in a can of the same brand. But, the plastic container of Chef Boyardee Beef Ravioli in Tomato and Meat Sauce (which has a metal peel-off lid ) was found to have one and a half times higher the amount of the chemical than cans of the ravioli.
How Much is Too Much?
Abnormal reproductive development in animals can result at exposures of 2.4 micrograms of BPA per kilogram of body weight per day. The average adult could ingest that amount of BPA by eating one or a few servings daily of canned foods with high BPA levels.
Other Safety Measures
Consumers can take additional safety measures, such as the following:
- Avoid plastic containers made of polycarbonate. They are usually clear rather than cloudy.
- See if the recycling code has the number 7 or the letters “PC.” No. 7 bottles made with BPA-free polyethersulfone (PES) won’t have the PC marking.
- Other BPA-free plastic alternatives include polyethylene, which may be marked with recycling codes 1 (PET) or 2 (HDPE), and polypropylene, 5 (PP).
- For babies, use glass or BPA-free plastics such as polyethylene.
- Athletes and others who recycle water bottles should consider polyethylene, stainless steel, or aluminum with BPA-free liners.
 |
 |
