Inside Prevention

Could BPA predispose girls to breast cancer? (California Watch, 10/4/2011)

An important new study published in Molecular Endocrinology demonstrates that BPA exposure in utero and through nursing appears to alter mammary tissue in such a way that predisposes the breast to later-life breast cancer.

In fact, the researchers tested BPA alongside DES, the notorious chemical prescribed to pregnant women from 1938 to 1971 that was later found to increase the risk of various cancers in "DES daughters," and found the two chemicals' effects on the mammary glands to be similar. That's serious cause for concern for pregnant and nursing women, as our president and CEO explained to California Watch:

"This is really an important piece of research," said Jeanne Rizzo, president and CEO of the Breast Cancer Fund, a San Francisco-based nonprofit that advocates for the elimination of breast cancer. "It validates other work that has been done and brings the focus to the pregnant mother, the in utero exposure that’s so critical to our understanding of the influence on breast development."

She said that based on this research, she would advise all pregnant women to do all they can to avoid BPA exposure.

"Don’t eat canned foods, buy glass, avoid plastic," she said. "You can do a lot to cut back on your exposure." (Read complete article.)

In addition to Jeanne's advice, we recommend using glass or stainless steel bottles and food containers instead of plastic. You can find tips for replacing canned foods with safe alternatives on our website.

How lobbyists are spinning weak science to defend BPA (The Atlantic, 9/27/2011)

The Atlantic has published a must-read article about our BPA in Kids' Canned Food report and the food packaging industry's effort to generate controversy about the formidable body of scientific evidence linking BPA to harm. In particular, industry is pointing to one apparently flawed study to defend its continued use of BPA in food cans:

The chemical industry, NAMPA [the North American Metal Packaging Alliance], and other industry groups have consistently defended the safety of BPA -- and lobbied extensively against its regulation. But that such a flawed study would be published and its findings so misrepresented has outraged prominent members of the scientific community. "Its conclusions are preposterous," says Fred vom Saal, professor of biological sciences at the University of Missouri-Columbia whose research on endocrine hormones dates back to the 1970s.

...

In criticizing the Breast Cancer Fund study, NAMPA also said the levels of BPA found in the kids' canned food tested -- an average of 13 to 114 parts per billion -- "are well within the safety recommendations of government agencies." But such levels of BPA, which is known to be biologically active at very low levels of exposure, according to vom Saal, are sufficient "to prompt an entire range of effects." (Read complete article.)

Study: BPA common in kids' canned foods (WebMD, 9/21/2011)

WebMD also covered our BPA in Kids' Canned Food report:

Cans of soup marketed for kids may have a potentially dangerous chemical that's not found on any food ingredient label.

A new report shows some canned soups and meals marketed to children contain the chemical bisphenol A (BPA). All of the products tested positive for the chemical, and Campbell's Disney Princess and Toy Story soups contained the highest levels.

A spokesman for Campbell's says regulatory agencies say the amount of BPA in canned foods doesn't pose a threat to health.

The average level of BPA in the 12 items tested was 49 ppb (parts per billion) and ranged from 10 to 148 ppb. The Environmental Protection Agency's estimate of safe exposure level is 50 ppb per day.

"One serving might be a concern, but a combination of repeated and re-exposure to BPA from cans marketed to kids is a bigger concern," says Connie Engel, PhD, science education coordinator at the Breast Cancer Fund, which conducted the study. (Read complete article.)

New evidence adds to case against bisphenol A (San Francisco Chronicle, 9/21/2011)

An editorial in the San Francisco Chronicle highlights two BPA topics that the Breast Cancer Fund supports: passage of California's Toxin-Free Infants and Toddlers Act (AB 1319), which now awaits Gov. Brown's signature; and our new BPA in Kids' Canned Food report.

The editorial points out that legislation around baby bottles and sippy cups are helpful, but not enough to protect children from BPA exposures:

There is no reason to have that chemical in baby products when safer alternatives are readily available. Brown should sign SB1319 to limit infants' BPA exposure, as 11 states have done in recent years, while lobbyists for the chemical and canning industries have been deflecting California BPA bills in each of the three previous years.

The real issue is whether the California Legislature went far enough. The bill originally would have extended the ban to infant food containers - specifically formula - but that provision was deleted to increase the chances of passage. And even that restriction may have been insufficient to protect children.

A report being released today by the Breast Cancer Fund showed disturbing levels of BPA in canned foods marketed for children. The fund commissioned an independent laboratory testing of a dozen popular canned foods - and all tested positive for the presence of BPA, which is used in the epoxy coatings in the inner lining of cans. (Read complete article.)

BPA in canned foods: Should you worry? (ABC News, 9/21/2011)

Coverage of our BPA in Kids' Canned Food report from ABC News:

BPA, a key ingredient in hard plastics and resins used to coat metal cans, made headlines in 2008 when it was shown to leach out of plastic when heated. The Canadian government responded by banning the chemical from baby bottles. In the United States, the federal government has not followed suit, but several local governments have and leading U.S. baby bottle manufacturers went BPA-free voluntarily. But the chemical continues to line the country's cans.

"I think they're definitely right in trying to get this chemical out of canned foods," said Dr. John Spangler, professor of family and community medicine at Wake Forest School of Medicine. "We can't do anything about past exposures but we can do something about current exposures." (Read complete article.)

BPA for lunch? 6 kid-friendly canned foods that flunked test (CBS News, 9/21/2011)

CBS News created an excellent photo gallery related to our BPA in Kids' Canned Food report. It's available only on the CBS News website; click here or on the photo below to view the whole gallery.

Controversial BPA found in canned kids' foods, report says (MSNBC, 9/21/2011)

Coverage of our BPA in Kids' Canned Food report, from MSNBC:

Breast Cancer Fund researchers tested for bisphenol A (BPA) in six products specifically marketed to children. Included in the list were such popular kid-targeted meals as Campbell’s “Disney Princess" soup with "shaped pasta with chicken in chicken broth” and Annie’s Homegrown certified organic “Cheesy Ravioli."

BPA, which is found in plastics, cash-register receipts, dental sealants and even money, has been linked in animal studies to a host of health ills, including possible cancers and developmental problems and early puberty. (Read complete article.)

SF group's study finds BPA in canned food for kids (KPIX-CBS San Francisco, 9/20/2011)

From San Francisco's CBS station, KPIX-TV:

(Visit KPIX online for complete coverage.)

Kids' Soup Cans Contain BPA Toxins (Discovery News, 9/21/2011)

This today from Discovery News, reporting on our BPA in Kids' Canned Food report:

It doesn't matter how many smiling cartoon characters decorate a package. If food comes in a can, it's likely to contain the worrisome chemical bisphenol A, or BPA, according to a new study.

The study, which looked at six popular name-brand products, adds to accumulating evidence that the hormone-interfering chemical is widespread in our food supply and in the bodies of most Americans, including children.

Advocacy groups have successfully managed to get companies to remove BPA from baby bottles, sippy cups, pacifiers and other products made for small children. The new findings suggest that food cans might need to be their next major target. (Read complete article.)

That last paragraph is critical: we need to convince canned food manufacturers that consumers want BPA out of food, and only safe alternatives considered. You can support this effort right now by asking the makers of the foods we tested for the report to stop marketing BPA to kids.

BPA in canned foods marketed to kids (San Francisco Chronicle blog, 9/21/2011)

Citing a report out today from the Breast Cancer Fund, the San Francisco Chronicle's Victoria Colliver writes on the Chron RX blog:

There's more than just enchanting princess shapes lurking in your kid's Campbell's Disney Princess condensed soup. The folks at San Francisco’s Breast Cancer Fund want you to know there’s also a toxic chemical that doesn’t make the ingredient list along with the modified food starch and soy lecithin. (Read complete article.)

Learn more about the report, including complete product testing results, on our website.