Oh Joy...New study shows health risk in plastic bottles

[Yva Minstrel]

OK, here's the deal, the substance, Bisphenol 5 is dangerous as are a great many chemicals or compounds. As my husband always says, people have to be careful around chemicals and make sure that when they eat or drink something, that they don't have it near or around chemicals. Pretty common knowledge there.

As for as consumer products that have this substance in them, having music CDs in your house as well as other plastics is not harmful since we don't generally eat those things. This can only be harmful if people eat the items in question. But, whatever you eat or drink out of these particular bottles could leave traces of Bisphenol 5 in your system and that could get into your blood stream and thus do the damage.

The best thing to do if you are concerned about the possibility of the substance being in your foods is to contact the company that makes the products in question and inquire as to whether or not there is a health risk involved. The FDA in the US probably keeps updated articles about these particular issues. I am guessing that they put out publications about said things rather frequently. Most of these organizations maintain updated statistics about whether or not these products have a risk factor involved, as well as what products are affected.

This time, there is cause for alarm, specifically with regards to the baby bottle thing. I would strongly suggest that parents look into this if there is concerns about this substance being in things that their child drinks from. Since their immune system is still developing, there is no way of knowing the affects on infants, since I'm guessing that this study started rather recently.

This may sound like I am contradicting my earlier posting, but after my husband consulted his chemistry encyclopedia, we both did some checking on the products we use to see if this substance poses us a danger; cola bottles, plastic drinking water bottles etc.. We discovered that these companies don't use the substance in question in their plastics. These bottles are also reused, (we call them PET Bottles), so they may be different than what the bottles in the USA or Canada are made of. My husband immediately knew from the name of the substance that it was in plastics and that it is dangerous and should not be used for human consumption.

At any rate, if you're concerned about this particular substance, then do your homework on it, and ask questions about it, specifically whether or not it is in the packaging for your food or drinks. The companies probably have to, by law state what substances are in their packaging just as they state what is in their food or drinks.

Oh and my earlier posting does not mean that people should not think about their health or dietary issues. I actually do think that people should pay some attention to their health and eating habits early on. However, they should not take some person's word for it because they said so. People should go to their doctor and let him/her help them balance out a diet if they want to lose weight and don't know how to go about it. Drastic weight loss without a doctor's assistance can be just as dangerous as drastic weight gain.

 

[wwfpooh]

Thanks for the research, Yva. Now, we know to avoid such chemicals. But then this research begs the question of how the substance in question ended up as part of the bottles in the first place?

 

[Oscarfan]

They're just trying to scare people into losing weight, that's all.

And that's bad how?

 

[D'Snowth]

And that's bad how?

The more you force someone to do something, the less they want to do it willing.

It's psychological. It's true.

Notice how whenever you try to get someone to stop smoking, it makes them smoke even more? My dad smokes about a pack of day, one cigarette right after another, and the doctor told him at this rate, he only has five more years so live. Squeegee can back me up on that, it's the same with weight loss; the more you pressure someone to lose weight, the less likely they're going to do it.

 

[Oscarfan]

So basically, you think it's reverse psychology.

If what you say is true, would someone have done something about it?

 

[D'Snowth]

Not necessarily, most people don't even see it that way.

 

[Yva Minstrel]

Notice how whenever you try to get someone to stop smoking, it makes them smoke even more?

That's not necessarily true, my husband's father smoked two packs a day during his younger years. Then one day, his doctor came to him and told him, 'either you quit, or you die'.

He quit, cold turkey and hasn't smoked a cigarette since. He didn't want to die and leave his family. Today, he is totally turned off by smoking.

Often times, a shocker like that will somehow force people to set priorities and motivate them to do something about it. This brings out a drastic lifestyle change. Not because of fear or reverse psychology, but because there's a honest to goodness motivation behind them doing it. Quite frankly, I think that the love of my father-in-law's family was what saved his life.

I suppose that sometimes negative pressure can force people to do something that is not healthy, but I think that when push comes to shove, there are a lot of other factors invovlved and not just 'reverse psychology'.

 

[wwfpooh]

But your father's a special case, Yva.

The reverse psychology meant by Snowth is best seen in children. Say their parents tell them they cannot do something. Now, just because they're not allowed to do said something, they'd be likely to do said something when their parents aren't present (like the stereotype of throwing un-sanctioned parties when the parents are gone).

 

[Ilikemuppets]

But then again, we've known foods high in cholesterol, carbs, and fats are "bad" for one for years!

That's just not sure. They are only bad of you eat too many way too ofter. In moderation they are fine with regular diet and exercise and that doesn't mean overboard diet or exercise.

 

[wwfpooh]

Right. Everything--especially things one can get obsessed over--is best taken in moderation.