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Bisphenol A plastic bottles 'harms babies' |
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Written by Charles Miranda, The Courier Mail
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Sunday, 10 January 2010 |
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 AUSTRALIAN FEDERAL health authorities are to come under increasing pressure to ban the sale of baby bottles made with Bisphenol A (BPA) after new evidence it can harm health.
Widely used in plastics, particularly food and drink containers, BPA leaches when heated, leading it to being withdrawn elsewhere in the world.
It had been thought the chemical posed no real health threat in tiny doses, but scientists in the UK now say they have found compelling evidence the chemical is linked to breast cancer and sex hormone imbalances, and is particularly linked to adverse health risks to babies.
A team of European scientists will this month begin a campaign to lobby their governments to remove baby bottles containing BPA from shelves.
Last year, baby bottle manufacturers in the US removed BPA from their products, reacting to widespread consumer concern.
Federal Health Minister Nicola Roxon said yesterday it was the responsibility of the Therapeutic Goods Administration to declare BPA unsafe or otherwise.
The TGA in turn said it was an issue for the federal Health Department, which passed the buck and declared it an issue for Food Standards Australia New Zealand (FSANZ).
FSANZ confirmed it had no regulatory authority over baby bottles and had never commissioned its own study on the issue, though it was monitoring the overseas BPA debate and that the most up-to-date science indicated there was a maximum daily safe limit.
Queensland-based anti-BPA campaigner Nadia Duensing has written to the Health Minister in light of the new research.
"I can't understand why the Australian Government is not following the lead from elsewhere," she said.
Ms Duensing, a grandmother, was so concerned about the possible health effects of BPA she launched a website campaigning against the chemical and selling BPA-free baby products.
Some of the biggest-selling baby bottle brands in Australia still sell bottles with BPA in them, including Avent, which is owned by Philips. (EDITOR'S NOTE: Avent has voluntarily agreed to remove BPA from its products produced for the US market.)
A Philips spokeswoman said yesterday that the company was acting responsibly and within guidelines set out by FSANZ, which concluded that levels of exposure (in infants) were very low and did not pose a significant health risk.
Ms Duensing said most mums did not realise the differences between different types of plastic bottles.
"Mothers go into a shop and see a polycarbonate bottle for about $10 and a BPA-free one for $18 and they don't know the difference – they just get the cheaper one thinking plastic is plastic," she said.
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Post a comment for an additional 5% off our already-low prices! |
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Post a comment on one of our news articles, or a review of a product you've ordered from us in our Mercantile, and we'll email you a COUPON CODE good for 5% off on your next purchase.
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The fine print: Your comment or product review must be relevant to the subject or product to which you're posting. Once we've reviewed and approved your comment, we'll email you a Coupon Code, usually within 72 hours, that you can use on your next purchase in our Mercantile. We're a family oriented Website, so keep the language to PG, be polite, and try to avoid snarkiness. Coupon Codes cannot be used in conjunction with any other offer or coupon code, are good for one purchase only and do not have an expiration date. This offer is subject to end at any time.
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