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"WHICH PLASTICS ARE HARMFUL?"
The lining of food cans, like cans of beans, can contain a chemical called BPA, otherwise most commonly found in polycarbonate plastics.
There is a battle ranging in North America about the safety of BPA. Last year Canada decided to start banning it as a toxic chemical,
whereas the US FDA said the stuff was completely fine. Who to believe?
The science, always!
Are the Canadians right, or is this one thing that the Bush administration science policy got right?
There are about a dozen new studies I could put up, but this is the one probably getting the most attention. From the Journal of the AMA, linking BPA levels to heart disease, diabetes, and liver inflammation.
Unfortunately it’s not that easy to stay away from the stuff.
The general rule is to stay away from numbers 3 and hard, clear number 7s. Numbers 2 and 5 are probably the safest – high density polyethylene and polypropylene.
But you don’t want to microwave even microwave-safe plastic, and I would encourage people to move to glass, Tupperware, and glass or stainless steel water bottles.
BPA is used in the lining of food cans, but thankfully very little seems to leech into the food, even from acidic foods like canned tomatoes.
There are BPA-free canned foods on the market now, like the ones used by Eden Foods. But the benefits of eating any kind of beans far, far outweigh any risks.
Remember: bean consumption means reduced blood pressure, lower body weight, and a slimmer waist.