As Amy Graff over at Mommy Files recently reported, the six largest manufacturers of baby bottles have voluntarily agreed to stop using bisphenol A, an estrogen-like compound in polycarbonate plastics and epoxy resin. The news comes as a big relief to parents like me, who have fretted over the possible health effects of the chemical and questioned the FDA's declaration that BPA was safe. (Were our babies being harmed with every sip of milk??) Another person who likely welcomed this development: Stanford researcher David Feldman, MD, who in the early 1990s identified and called to attention the possible impact of BPA on health. As he commented during a Q&A last spring, "I feel there's enough evidence to support a 'better safe than sorry' approach, particularly for fetuses, infants and children... In my opinion, the prudent thing for current or expectant parents or those planning a pregnancy to do would be to limit their child's exposure to bisphenol A."
Photo by Micah Sittig