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The Issue of Plastic Baby Bottle Risks and What Parents Can Do
For several years, various countries have faced the issue of plastic bottle use for babies. It has been a popular topic in the news and a concern for various health authorities, particularly questionning the banning of plastic bottles altogether. There have been arguments about its use due to its risk on bottle-fed babies.
For decades, plastic bottles have been the bottle of choice for feeding babies due to its light-weight, unbreakable and transparent qualities.
What is the Issue?
- Bisphenol (BPA) is an industrial chemical most commonly used to make a clear polycarbonate plastic for consumer products. The plastic is clear, incredibly hard and becomes shatter-resistant. When heated however, BPA can leach out of the plastic into the food or liquid in the container.
- Adding boiling water to polycarbonate plastic bottles causes a dramatic spike in the amount of BPA that leach into the liquid. The main source of BPA for babies include the following: (a) migration of BPA into liquid infant formula from infant formula cans; (b) from BPA, migrating into hot and boiling water placed into polycarbonate baby bottles, which when cooled, are used to mix with powdered formula or given directly to the infant.
- Although the amount may not seem like much, the effects may be strongly cumulative on the small baby over time.
- BPA has been linked to cancers, impaired immune function, and early onset of puberty, obesity, diabetes, and hyper activity.
- Babies are very sensitive with immature immune systems, organs and a developing brain. Studies show that problems associated with BPA exposure during the critical stages of development (the early childhood years) may not surface until years after exposure.
- Various health authorities have established a maximum acceptable/tolerable daily dose of 0.05 milligrams per kilo body weight. Scientists conclude that BPA exposure to newborns and infants may pose risks to babies, however the gap between exposure and effects is not large enough.
Recognizing Baby Bottles Made from Polycarbonate with BPA
Polycarbonate is a clear, hard plastic. It typically has the number seven in the center of the recycling symbol (recycling triangle) on the bottom of the product. Although the number seven is a broad category, you can only be sure that it is the number seven if it has PC beside it as well.
Not all products will have the number, so be sure to read the packaging.
What Parents Can Do For Now
Until further recommendations by various health authorities (different in various countries), parents should do the following should they choose to continue using plastic bottles:
(1) Do not add boiling water to a baby's bottle. Let the boiling water cool to a lukewarm temperature in a non-polycarbonate container before transferring it to a baby's bottle.
(2) Use alternatives such as the following:
- Baby bottles (or baby bottle liners flexible plastic liners insert) made of polyethylene (PE) which has a code of (2) or (4) or polypropylene (PP) which has a code of (5).
- Plastic baby bottles labeled as Bisphenol-Free.
- Glass baby bottles (please refer to my book "Babies and Toddlers: Feeding and Nutritional Health" and refer to the 'Equipment Used for Feeding' chapter); comments regarding the safety use of glass bottles include such things as the following: (1) Do not give the glass bottle to the child to hold, or let the child sleep with it; (2) The glass can chip or crack during sterilization allowing glass splinters to end up in your child's beverages; (3) The glass bottle can be broken and cause cuts on your child; and (4) Inspect glass bottles carefully and regularly and scratched, cracked or chipped bottles should be discarded immediately.
(3) At meal time, you can heat the bottle in the pan with a water or bottle warmer rather than a microwave, since microwaves can heat the bottle and formula unevenly causing chemicals to leach out.
(4) When cleaning bottle and sippy cups containing BPA, do not put them in the dishwasher. Instead, wash them with warm water and mild soap and dry air. If cleaned in the dishwasher, it should be left to cool at room temperature before adding infant formula.
(5) When possible, you may want to consider going from the breast right to the sippy cup (free of BPA), skipping the bottle altogether.
(6) If breastfeeding is not chosen, canned infant formula is still the best choice as the nutritional benefits far outweigh possible risks.
Additional Comments
- BPA is used in various metal cans and the epoxy lining of cans of infant formulas can also contain BPA. Epoxy resin is used as a protective coating in metal based foods and beverage cans (preventing corrosion of the cans and contamination of food and beverage with dissolved metals). Also, preserve the quality and safety of the canned food.
- BPA does not pose any risks to adults, teenage children, and therefore, they can continue the use of polycarbonate water bottles, canned foods, and beverages.
- Polycarbonate is used in a limited number of household containers besides baby bottles such as sippy cups, reusable water bottlers (e.g. sports bottles, pitchers, tableware, and food storage containers, etc).
- Some plastic food containers like ketchup, mayonnaise, salad dressing bottles, and so forth, have the recycling number seven on the bottom, but they do not contain BPA. The soft squeezable bottles are not made from polycarbonate and do not contain BPA. Only hard and clear plastic bottles are made from polycarbonate. As a general rule, if you can easily squeeze the bottle, it is not made from polycarbonate plastics, and does not contain BPA. Only if there is the letters PC in the recycling symbol, then it is the only way to be certain that it contains BPA. If you are not sure, contact the manufacturer.
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What Mother's Want To Know Search through a variety of frequently asked questions to help you with your own questions or concerns. View More The Issue of Plastic Baby Bottles Read a great article written by Dr. Maurice Levy concerning the issue of plastic baby bottles for toddlers. Read Article |
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