Commentary: Plastic Packaging, Diabetes Link

Living Well

Plastic bottles and other disposable packaging may be dangerous to your health according to a research project reported in the September 17 Journal of the American Medical Association. The research indicates bisphenol A (BPA) and other materials used in food packaging significantly raise risk of developing diabetes and heart disease.

BPA is widely used throughout the industrialized world to manufacture polycarbonate plastic and epoxy resins. While there has been controversy about its use in food packaging since 1930, there was no definitive link between BPA and health concerns. As recently as September 8, the government confirmed it could find no detrimental effects from the product. However, this study, conducted in the United Kingdom, demonstrates a 63 percent increase in risk for heart disease and a 39 percent increase in diabetes among people with higher levels of BPA in their urine.

Chances are you and your children may have been exposed to significant levels of BPA and are at increased health risk. That’s because BPA is used to make baby bottles, water bottles, the lining inside food cans and many other common food packaging products. Plastic food containers containing BPA are often marked on the bottom with the letters "PC" recycling label #7, though not all are marked. The chemical is also used in products such as CDs, but whether exposure to non-food items containing BPA yields a health risk has yet to be determined.

Why the chemical concoction causes these diseases is unknown. However, BPA has been shown to have an affect on hormones, in particular estrogen receptors. There is no definitive documentation to date addressing the subject, although the results from studies in animals have been mixed. Those results have shown impairment in reproduction, and damage to liver cells and pancreatic beta cells where insulin is produced.

The FDA believes there is an adequate margin of safety. Industry sources have provided its own research showing no ill effects after ingestion. At this point it is difficult to know who is right. Further studies will have to confirm the link to diabetes and heart disease or present different findings.

Corie Richter is a nurse and physician's assistant who started her career as a health educator. The survivor of a myocardial infarction (heart attack) and partially successful quadruple bypass surgery, she did not let her health challenges hamper her. Neither the limitations of spinal surgery nor of diabetes have deterred her from a mission of service. She now encourages others through writing and speaking engagements to master their disabilities through education and a proactive attitude.