BPA in baby bottles, Independent front page

[styrofoam]

Very detailed piece in today's Indy about BPA in baby bottles and why Britain doesn't seem to be doing much about it.

tinyurl.com/ya4gy7x

And...

tinyurl.com/ye8hr4w

numerous cancers, birth defects, serious immune system suppression, high miscarriage rates, reduced fertility, impaired heart, kidney and liver function are all proven to be caused by endocrine disrupting chemicals..

I'm beginning to think you're a lobbyist too lottie!

There is absolutely overwhelming evidence. I don't think governments worldwide would ban things, at great financial expense, for no reason.

More than 80,000 chemicals are currently in use which have never been assessed for toxic impacts on human health or the environment. 2000 new chemicals are introduced each year without having to prove that they are safe for humans.

This is one which is known to have toxic effects and should be banned with immediate effect. Health vs wealth. Morality aside, healthcare will ultimately cost more to the government than the cost and implications of imposing a ban.

Good summary of BPA here

Sorry to come over a bit Ben Goldacre on this but there are a lot of words being bandied around like "really dangerous" and "overwhelming evidence" yet really all I can see from any research is the possibility that BPA might cause some adverse effects. Now I agree that anything that might be toxic to our babies should be avoided if possible and I even bought glass bottles for ds, but when I looked into it myself I couldn't find anything that would convince me that there was a really serious risk.

Even smoking, which I'm sure everyone would agree is a genuine serious health risk will only harm those genetically susceptible to the adverse effects of cigarette smoke.

Seriously liath? I was listening to somethign on Radio 4 the other day about how genetics does play a part but only about 25% - the other 75% is directly linked to lifestyle choices.

alysonpeaches the numbers on the TT sippy cups are not inside the triangles so not the same thing I think - every one of my TT sippy cups has a different number even though they were bought at the same time in the same shop

I was told that TT sippy cups are BPA free.

Having looked at the TT website it looks like my bog standard TT flip top is not BPA free. Some of the others are however.

I'm thinking that if it was, they'd make a song and dance about it as its a selling point. but they dont??

Don't have the energy to read the whole thread but I think you can avoid products which contain BPA by checking the numbers on the base of bottles or anything made of plastic, the numbers are a packaging requirement I think for recycling purposes. I learned about BPA at my nct breastfeeding course last year and used TT bottles rather than avent. I was utterly horrified that more people weren't being made aware as I had seen loads of mums using avent bottles and I think they are linked into special offers at boots etc.. not nice to think of. Ironically it was the links to cancer that horrified me - my dd was diagnosed with stage 1 cancer aged 7m. All fine now!

quote salbysea:
alysonpeaches the numbers on the TT sippy cups are not inside the triangles so not the same thing I think - every one of my TT sippy cups has a different number even though they were bought at the same time in the same shop

I have looked at my collection and the number 7 is DEFINITELY in the triangle!

We are talking the easiflow cups, not the first cup, these arent the latest model but they are the ones our kids like and I initially bought them as they were endorsed by the BDA as having the correct drinking action which was kind to teeth. See link below:

www.chemistdirect.co.uk/tommee-tippee-easiflow-soft-grip-beaker-9m_1_152549.html

I threw away my TT sippy cup this morning and went to wilkinson to buy new ones with a 4 instead of a 7 in the triangle.

I threw mine into the recycling bag then got them out again as I read the info on the TT site meant for Australia saying the easiflow is BPA free. With one of our children being autistic, changes can be difficult!

I have noticed that the 7 in a triangle says "OTHER" underneath it.

TT and BPA info:

www.tommeetippee.com.au/productsbpa.asp?bpa=1

Not all number 7 plastics have BPAs in though, which adds to the confusion. Number 7 plastics can be layered products, which explains the tommee tippee cups, as they have that rubbery coating on them to make them non slip.

Number 7 plastics:

www.thedailygreen.com/green-homes/latest/recycling-symbols-plastics-460321

I'm a BPA avoider.

If anyone has any doubts about their tommee tippee products, I've emailed customer services in the past and they've been very helpful in letting me know what plastics the cup was made of. I enquired about the tommee tippee first cup which is all polypropylene (number 5 plastic) which is the 'safest' of all the plastics.

Also Pyrex make lots of small round containers which I find great for heating and freezing. They come with plastic lids but as long as you don't overfill they don't touch the food.

I don't think anyone's mentioned spoons? I could never find out what any of the weaning spoons were made of. Eventually I found some great silicone spoons which I have now used for over 18 months and they look as good as new - I would highly recommend them. cgi.ebay.co.uk/Fun-Silicone-Baby-Spoon-Pink,Blue,Orange-or-Green-_W0QQitemZ120494810273QQcmdZ ViewItem?rvrid=&rvrid=&cguid=9a334aec1230a0e20192c022ff123a56

cgi.ebay.co.uk/Fun-Silicone-Baby-Spoon-Pink,Blue,Orange-or-Green-_W0QQitemZ120494810273QQcmdZViewIte m?rvrid=&rvrid=&cguid=9a334aec1230a0e20192c022ff123a56

A lot of steam sterilisers contain BPA too... No point having BPA-free bottles if you are sterilising them in your old unit, I would imagine.

Guess which number my kids' Amadeus milk beakers have on the bottom .

I have some IKEA plastic bowls too which they eat out of every day - they don't have a number in a triangle, but they have a dial with the arrow pointing to 7, and also a number 2 on them not inside a triangle. ANy idea what that means?

I emailed tommee tippee a couple of days ago as I couldnt get through on the phone. I will post the results.

I just checked the bottles I bought from Mothercare and they have a sticker on stating that they are BPA free. If some manufacturers can make BPA free bottles there isn't really any excuse is there?

Tommee Tippee have replied to me about the easiflow cups. Although they have a 7 in triangle they are not polycarbonate. The 7 must be beause the plastics are layered, affeting the recycling proess. See my earlier post.

THE REPLY
Hi Alyson

Thank you for your e-mail. The Easiflow cups are not made from Polycarbonate therefore are BPA free.

I hope this is of some help to you

Many Thanks

Lauren Crouth
, Mayborn Baby & Child Division
Telephone: | Fax:

Tommee Tippee - Making it easier for you to do what's best for them

I bet that they will ban BPA in the next few years. They will continue to do research and find that Bisphenol A is causing serious problems. Lawsuits are already starting to emerge from BPA injury.

See bottom of this article:

www.bpaplastic.com/bisphenol-a-what-is-it-and-how-can-you-avoid-it