We Know BPA Is Unsafe For Babies But It’s Not Great For Moms Either
Since I’ve had my children, whenever I buy something plastic I search for the assurance that it is “BPA free.” Although I refuse to buy anything for my child to eat off of that doesn’t contain these words, I have never done the same for myself. As someone who experienced several miscarriages, it seems BPA is something I should have been trying to avoid.
A small study conducted at Stanford University showed a link between higher levels of BPA in the blood and miscarriage. 115 newly pregnant women with a history of infertility or miscarriage were studied. Of the 115, 68 had miscarriages and 47 had live births. From The Associated Press:
Researchers analysed blood samples from when the women were discovered to be pregnant and divided them into four groups based on BPA levels. Women in the top quarter had an 80 per cent greater risk of miscarriage compared to those in the bottom group even though they were similar in age and other factors. However, because the study is relatively small, there was a big range of possible risk – from only slightly elevated to as much as 10 times higher.
It’s a small study, but it still reminds me how much more care I am constantly putting into the choices I make for my children, but not for myself. I’ve always known that BPA is unsafe in large quantities, but I have never actively avoided it for myself. The same was true when I was pregnant. I would always try to eat organic, avoid processed foods and certainly harsh chemicals. Clearly, if it’s bad for kids, it’s also bad for us, right? I know I’m not the only one who doesn’t put the same amount of care into the choices she makes for herself as she does into the choices she makes for her kids.
Dr. Ruth Lathi, a Stanford University reproductive endocrinologist says the study is not cause for alarm, but “it’s far from reassuring that BPA is safe” for women who have a history of infertility or miscarriage. You can minimize BPA exposure by not warming food in plastic containers, leaving water bottles in the sun and trying to avoid handling cash register receipts. Cash register receipts!
“It’s impossible to avoid it completely,” Lathi said.
(photo: mervas/ Shutterstock)
