A new study is revealing critical details about the much-maligned chemical Bisphenol A, or BPA.
The study, published in Environmental Research on Wednesday, says canned food consumption can expose our bodies to too much BPA. BPA is used in myriad consumer products to prevent metal corrosion and breakages and preserve the food inside. It also calls out the products that pass along higher BPA levels, with canned soups and pasta releasing greater levels than canned fruit and vegetables.
Those who ate one canned food item a day had a 24 percent greater BPA concentration in their urine than those who didn’t have such an item, according to the study. Downing a can of soup meant a 229 percent greater BPA concentration.
Data for the study came from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey, which included 7,669 people in the U.S. between 2003 and 2008 above the age of 6.
“I am not surprised by these research findings, as others have shown that consuming canned foods is one of the highest routes of exposure to BPA,” Deborah Kurrasch, an assistant professor at the University of Calgary Cumming School of Medicine, told CNN. Kurrasch is not affiliated with the research.
Still, consumers don’t need to panic.
“It’s important for consumers to realize that these levels are well below a ‘part per million’ in their food,” John Rost, chairman of the North American Metal Packaging Alliance, told CNN.
The Environmental Protection Agency recommends limiting BPA consumption based on body weight (50 micrograms per kilograms a day).
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Canned Foods Expose Us to More BPA, Study Says originally appeared on usnews.com
