"Americans are likely to be exposed at higher levels than previously thought to bisphenol A, a compound that mimics hormones important to human development and is found in more than 90 percent of people in the United States, according to new research.
"U.S. EPA says it is OK for humans to take in up to 50 micrograms of BPA per kilogram of body weight each day. The new study, published in the journal Environmental Health Perspectives, suggests that we are exposed to at least eight times that amount every day.
"Our data raise grave concern that regulatory agencies have grossly underestimated current human exposure levels," states the study."
The text above is from an article in yesterday's New York Times: Study: Human Exposure to BPA 'Grossly Underestimated' which I found highly disturbing.
I've been on a quest for a long time to remove a majority of plastics from my household in the quest to reduce my exposure to BPAs. When I mention this to friends/family, I'm often told that I'm overreacting, and that it's not really a big deal. And I've probably felt complacent for a while about the removal of BPAs from what I buy. I don't drink out of plastic bottles, and none of my glasses, dishes or food storage containers are made of plastic anymore. But I'm all for convenience foods and have conveniently ignored the BPAs that are present in the packaging of the foods I buy, and the containers I'm microwaving them in. (The microwave is a whole different issue that I want to write about.) I figure I'm doing "so much already" in terms of avoiding it. But when I read articles like this, I realize I'm not doing enough.
BPAs are stored in the body in fat (among other places). So if this hormone-disrupting substance is storing itself in the ample fat storage of my body, and now studies are showing that "they" really underestimated how much humans are exposed to, well, it makes me think twice about my health and what I'm doing for it.
It's frustrating to think that as I make so many changes to "detox" my body of the chemicals and exposures of my lifetime which have caused the many ailments I've suffered from, that simultaneously I'm returning these substances to my body.
One thing I urge you to pay attention to are the numbers on the bottom of plastics that you purchase. If you see a symbol that looks like the one to the right with a #7 on it, I recommend that you avoid it. This is the symbol used when a plastic doesn't fall under all the other categories, and while all #7 plastics do not contain BPAs, those that DO contain it will usually bear a #7 on it.
There are so many things in our environment that we do not have any control over, but this is something that we can start to become aware of and avoid when possible. Don't just take my word for it - do your own research into the reported effects of BPAs, as I did when I first heard about it.
I have BPA samples (and other toxic substance samples - all in energetic form so as not to be harmful to anyone) in my Health Kinesiology test kits, which I can use in corrections to help the body recognize it and learn how to process it out of our system. But it's always easier to keep things from happening than work to fix them later!
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