BPA is a chemical used in the linings of most food and beverage cans as well as in many clear plastic containers. At least 7 billion pounds of BPA are produced annually for use in products ranging from dental sealants to medical equipment to coatings on cash-register receipts, as well as food containers and packaging. (See our report about BPA in a recent Consumer Reports article, and listen to an interview with Consumer Reports' Dr. Urvashi Rangan about the effects of BPA on WNYC's Leonard Lopate radio show.)
Recently, at the same time that the Food and Drug Administration announced a significant shift in its view on the potential health risks posed by Bisphenol A, the Department of Health and Human Services said that it is investing $30 million in human and animal studies over the next two years to yield further information about BPA’s health effects.
Shepherding this crucial research effort is Linda Birnbaum, director of the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS), a federal research center based in North Carolina. Birnbaum, an award-winning microbiologist and toxicologist, has served as a federal scientist for nearly three decades. During that time, her research has focused on the health effects of environmental pollutants such as dioxin, which like BPA is thought to be an endocrine-disrupting chemical.
Below is an excerpt from an interview with Dr. Birnbaum just a few days before the FDA’s policy change was announced.
Q: What do you think the most important unanswered questions are? In this $30 million of research, what would be at the top of your list?
A: I think there are a couple that are really important. We really have to understand the severity of effects that can be caused. How important really are the effects that are being reported at very low levels of BPA? And there’s a multitude of effects. Some of the analyses or the evaluations have focused, for example, on the effects on the developing reproductive system or the developing nervous system. Well, there’s evidence that it also affects the immune system. There is evidence that it affects the cardiovascular system. And I think it’s very important that we have a better understanding of the overall nature of the effects.
The other thing we really have to understand is how much of the BPA is needed to cause these effects? And what are the critical times of exposure in people? Are the critical windows in utereo? Are the critical windows in infants? What about puberty? There are now several new studies that have come out showing effects in adults. When you do cross-sectional studies, which are what these new studies are, and you look at a single point of time in people, you don’t really know if the effects you are seeing are caused by the current exposure to BPA or whether it was the history of exposure that led to that effect. Those are still some major questions.
Read the full interview on our Safety blog.
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