New York State just passed a law banning the sale of baby bottles, sippy cups, and a variety of other children’s products that contain <"https://www.yourlawyer.com/practice_areas/toxic_substances">bisphenol A—BPA—said WBEN. Governor David Paterson signed the law Saturday, which is scheduled to become effective December 1, 2010.
Governor Paterson said the new law will protect children from “a potentially harmful substance,” quoted WBEN. The legislation passed with a unanimous vote in the Senate and Assembly this June.
WBEN said that, citing advocates, about six other states have bans similar to NY’s emerging ban.
According to a previous WGRZ report, as of June, about 18 additional states were looking into legislation banning BPA, said Assemblyman Steven Englebright (Democrat-Suffolk County). Prior to this weekend’s move in NY state, Rockland, Albany, Schenectady, and Suffolk counties, all in NY, enacted similar laws restricting the use of BPA in sippy cup and baby bottles, said WGRZ, citing the bill’s sponsors. The states of Connecticut, Maryland, Minnesota, Washington, and Wisconsin have also adopted similar laws, added the sponsors.
The BBC previously wrote that BPA has been banned or limited in three countries: Canada, Denmark, and France. Bans are also in place in Australia, and New Zealand and last year, the World Health Organization (WHO) said it would be launching a study to look at the health effects of BPA, wrote TimesArgus.
BPA, a polycarbonate plastic, is found in a wide variety of consumer products, and was very recently found to be present in common paper receipts with laboratory tests recently commissioned by Environmental Working Group (EWG) found high levels of the endocrine-disrupting chemical on 40 percent of receipts sampled from major U.S. businesses and services. The total amounts of BPA on receipts tested were 250 to 1,000 times greater than other, more widely discussed sources of BPA exposure, including canned foods, baby bottles, and infant formula, said EWG.
BPA can be found in baby bottles, sippy cups, water bottles, aluminum can linings, eyeglasses, cars, DVD and CD cases, and some dental sealants. BPA can also be found in water as a result of aquatic paints and in appliances and windshields. On recyclable bottles, BPA, as a component, can be verified if the item contains recycling number 7.
BPA is known to imitate the hormone estrogen, acts as an anti-androgen, and is also known to affect sexual development and processes, especially in developing fetuses, infants, and children. Hundreds of studies have linked BPA to cardiovascular disease, intestinal problems, brain cell connection interference, increased risks of reproductive and immune system diseases and disorders, problems with liver function testing, interruptions in chemotherapy treatment, premature puberty, polycystic ovarian syndrome, and erectile dysfunction and male sexual problems.
In urine tests, BPA is found in the overwhelming majority of Americans, more than 93 percent and, significantly, the chemical is found in 90 percent of all newborns.
