Scientific Study Finds 40% Of All Store Receipts Covered
In Dangerous Hormone-Disrupting Chemical Massive amounts of harmful sterilant may be
absorbed into bloodstream
A
scientific study has found that receipts from ATM's, grocery
stores, fast food restaurants and gas stations contain massive
amounts of
bisphenol A (BPA), the harmful chemical that is
known to cause fertility problems and cancer.
Huge quantities of the chemical were discovered coating 40%,
or two fifths, of all U.S. thermal activated paper receipts
in a
study conducted by the Environmental Working Group,
a nonprofit organization in Washington, D.C.
The group commissioned the University of Missouri Division
of Biological Sciences to undertake the research. The laboratory,
one of the world's foremost research facilities, found that
in some cases pure BPA made up 3% of the total weight of the
receipt.
The lab also discovered that the chemical was easily transferable
from the receipt onto anything it came into contact with, including
the skin of anyone handling the paper.
Previous studies, including recent research
by Swiss scientists, have found that BPA from receipts
can transfer to skin and penetrate so deeply that it cannot
be washed off and may even enter the bloodstream.
Some of the researchers also discovered that alcohol-based
sanitizers can increase BPA penetration into the skin.
There are also concerns that BPA from receipts could be transferred
from skin onto food and enter the body through ingestion.
Major retailers using the BPA-containing receipts include McDonald's,
CVS, KFC, Whole Foods, Walmart, and the U.S. Postal Service,
according to the EWG research. Safeway was found to have the
highest amounts of BPA on their receipts, at a level of up to
41 milligrams.
There are readily available non-BPA thermal paper receipts
already being used by thousands of retailers, therefore the
route of exposure to the chemical in this instance could be
easily rectified, the EWG says.
"Our point is that 60 per cent of the receipts had no
BPA or very insignificant traces. This is one exposure that’s
easily fixed. Retailers can easily make the transition to BPA-free
paper," Anila Jacob, a senior scientist at EWG told the
Toronto
Star.
BPA is currently found in many plastic water bottles and used
in the lining of soda, food, and baby-formula cans. Research
has confirmed that the chemical can leach from the containers
into the food or liquid within.
The EWG study found that the total mass of BPA on a paper receipt
is 250 to 1,000 times greater than the amount typically entering
food from BPA laced containers. The group states that BPA contamination
of food should remain the priority, but that this latest information
is also highly disturbing.
Although the FDA and the EPA, citing just two chemical-industry
studies, still officially consider the synthetic estrogen-like
chemical to be safe, hundreds of independent studies, which
the feds have ignored, have linked BPA to genital abnormalities,
early puberty, cancer, type 2 diabetes, obesity, and fertility
problems.
Even the government's National
Institutes of Health’s National Toxicology Program
(NTP) recently warned that BPA is a cause for "some concern"
due to possible effects on the behavior, brain, and prostate
gland of children, babies, and fetuses. This prompted the FDA
to announce earlier this year that it now also
has "some concern" over the chemical's use in food
packaging and baby bottles - though the government regulatory
body is yet to do anything about it.
Four U.S. states, including Maryland and New York State, as
well as Canada, have not been willing to wait, and have recently
banned BPA due to the evidence of its links to health problems.
Biomonitoring surveys
by the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
have found BPA in the bodies of a stunning 93% of all Americans
over the age of 6. Interestingly, in light of the recent findings
with paper receipts, EWG analysis of the CDC data has found
that people who reported working in retail industries had 30
percent more BPA in their bodies than the average U.S. adult,
and 34 percent more BPA than other workers.
The research found that people with the highest BPA levels
were twice as likely to suffer from diabetes or cardiovascular
problems than those with lower levels.
Watch Alex Jones' recent special report for more astounding
and vital information on the threat posed by the chemicals being
put into our foods:
Food: The Ultimate Secret Exposed - PART ONE:
PART TWO:
ADDENDUM:
Advocacy groups recommend that consumers should avoid BPA
by doing the following:
• Search for unlucky 7. Avoid “#7” plastic
food or beverage containers (check for the numbered triangle
on the bottom of the container). Safer plastics for storing
your consumables are numbers 2, 4, and 5. Better yet, go for
ceramic, stainless steel, or glass.
• Look askance at cans. Favor fresh, frozen or shelf-stable
boxed or pouched food over canned food (at least until food
makers stop lining their cans with BPA). If you can’t
completely avoid cans, be aware that BPA is prone to leach into
acidic foods like tomatoes or pasta sauces. BPA is fat-soluble,
too, so if you eat canned tuna, make sure it’s packed
in water, not oil.
• Keep plastic cool. Avoid heating any plastic container,
since this promotes leaching. “It’s probably wise
never to heat or microwave food in any kind of plastic,”
Landrigan says. “Most plastics contain one additive or
another, and none are likely to benefit human health.”
If you tote your water in a metal bottle, check with the manufacturer
to see what the lining’s made out of—some could
contain BPA.
A
scientific study has found that receipts from ATM's, grocery
stores, fast food restaurants and gas stations contain massive
amounts of