BPA-Bisphenol-A

Ok, most people live in this world no conception whatsoever about whatever this junk called "BPA" is. Why would they care? How would they know about it? Well, thankfully, I tripped over it through my mommy research materials (better known as thenest.com, google, and Charlotte Mommies).

BPA is a part of plastic that makes it hard and clear, a very widely used material by baby bottle and sippy cup makers and makers of other products including tupperware, canned foods and water bottles. It doesn't stop there, though. It's also found in sunglasses, CD's, and some dental fillings.

What's it to you? BPA breaks down after being heated to high temperatures (dishwasher or microwave), after thawing from frozen, and after being subjected to harsh cleaning agents. It seeps into the nurturing elements we feed ourselves and our babies. Linked to causing reproductive problems, autism, ADD, and cancers among many other things found in the testing of lab animals, BPA could be the contributing factor to the recent rise in incidence of devistating conditions we previously had nothing else to blame. Unfortunately, you don't immediately know when BPA has done it's damage. We find out when it's too late...when our kids struggle in school, when we struggle in dispair to conceive, when we undergo rigorous treatment for cancerous pathogens that are distructing our bodies. With all the craze, Zack and I decided we are not going to continue to subject the life of our little blessing, Luke, to the potential effects of BPA by using the Dr. Brown's and Avent bottles we previously favored. We have used the dishwasher to clean these bottles and even if we stop now, who knows what affect our previous behavior had. Let's not risk it. I've discovered that BPA is not found in opaque plastics, leaving us the option of glass bottles or other non-opaque plastic bottles. We settled on Playtex Drop-Ins for the time being...so long as they work for Luke.

Not only babies are affected. We have all been known to freeze and use water bottles on hot summer days or for a trip to the gym. This, too, causes BPA to leach out into the thirst quencher and furthermore into our bodies. We heat and reheat tupperware in the microwave so we may enjoy leftovers. Please, we all need to take the time to check our kitchens for BPA containing products. Look on the bottom of containers. If you see the number 7 in the triangle, this represents the type of recyling that this plastic requires and this plastic contains BPA. Toss it.

There's no way to be 100% safe but I, personally, feel better being aware that this problem exists and being proactive to prevent exposure to it.