>Carolyn Schindewolf <[log in to unmask]> wrote:
>
>Our Community Ed dept received a letter from a mother of a 3 year 
>old.  She had taken our breastfeeding class during her pregnancy and 
>was writing to voice her concern that we recommended the Avent pump 
>which she stated "contain bisphenols and could have harmed the baby".

For what it's worth, the National Toxicology Program's Center for the 
Evaluation of Risks to Human Reproduction will be reviewing the data 
on bisphenol-a in a few weeks. The interim report is available at 
<http://cerhr.niehs.nih.gov/> (click on report in the right-hand 
sidebar). It is a lengthy read, but it may be useful. Odds are there 
will be some media interest in the story, hence more moms with 
concerns. Depending on which source you consult, however, you will 
learn that BPA is either the safest thing on planet Earth or the 
surest path to human extinction.

I think the following article is pretty balanced 
<http://www.thegreenguide.com/doc/ask/nalgene>.

One of the researchers referenced in the article isn't named, but 
I've read the research and recognized the work of Patricia A. Hunt. 
Her lab group accidentally discovered that damaged polycarbonate 
bottles leach BPA and that that is associated with a higher risk of 
chromosomal damage to oocytes (see the abstract 
<http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/sites/entrez?Db=pubmed&Cmd=ShowDetailView&TermToSearch=12676084&ordinalpos=1&itool=EntrezSystem2.PEntrez.Pubmed.Pubmed_ResultsPanel.Pubmed_RVAbstractPlus>). 
This was a fairly potent discovery, because the bottles were not 
"melted" but rather damaged by machine washing with a harsh detergent.

With regard to human health risk BPA may affect hormonally sensitive 
tissue and its function (particularly if exposure occurs during 
development). What constitutes "hormonally sensitive tissue" is 
fairly broad though. Traditionally, researchers focused on gonadal 
and breast tissues, but researchers are now learning that many other 
tissues are hormonally sensitive to some degree or another. For 
example, there's been some recent research suggesting that BPA can 
affect insulin secretion, thus alter metabolism, which may contribute 
to obesity.

The operative word here is "may"---a lot of this is speculative and 
there are so many other factors that play into the equations. Not the 
least of which is sorting through the differing conclusions about the 
data. The plastics industry has a website devoted to BPA: 
<http://www.bisphenol-a.org>. Contrast what's on that site with Our 
Stolen Future's site: 
<http://www.ourstolenfuture.org/policy/2006/2006-0107ab319.html>.

Good luck.

regards,
Julia

Julia R. Barrett
Science Writer & Editor in the Life Sciences
Madison, Wisconsin
608-238-8409; [log in to unmask] 

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