You know those clear plastic containers?  The ones made of polycarbonate.  Well, many of them have a lining comprised of bisphenol A (BPA).  This coating helps make the plastic harder, keeps microbial contamination out of the foods they contain, or, when used on cans instead of plastic bottles, the coating stops the cans from rusting.   Oh, and
BPA has tremendous endocrine effects.  NOT good ones.

BPA was discovered at the tail end of the 19th century and was used in the 1930’s as a synthetic estrogen product.  And, that use can explain why there is such concern about BPA now now. Which is why the FDA banned the product from use in sippy cups and baby bottles in 2012. (And, just to be sure for yourselves, don’t use products with the imprint PC and the recycle code of 7- they are prime targets for BPA.

But, one of the newer prime uses for BPA is in the printing of all those thermal receipts we get when we pay by credit card.  Which just got a whole lot scarier, because of research effected by Drs. Hormann, vom Saal, Nagel, Stahlhut, Moyer, Ellersieck, Welshons, Taylor (all from the University of Missouri) and Toutain (Toulouse, France).

These researchers published their findings, Holding Thermal Receipt Paper and Eating Food after Using Hand Sanitizer Results in High Serum Bioactive and Urine Total Levels of Bisphenol A (BPA), in PLOSOne.   One of the first facts I learned from this research is that these thermal receipts have high levels of BPA (on the order of 20 mg/g of paper [2% by weight]).

And, if you purchase your food (say from McDonalds), take your receipt, and then eat your breakfast or lunch, then you’ve raised your exposure to BPA, which can have all sorts of negative health effects.  (The researchers found the BPA transferred pretty well to those french fries many of you purchase.)  But, if you think you need to clean your hands before you eat- and are somewhat lazy so you use those hand sanitizers, you’ve really blown it.

You see, those hand sanitizers increase the ability of BPA (among so many other compounds) to permeate your skin by a factor of about 100.  That means you have made it nearly impossible for your skin to retain the BPA on the outsides of your body.  Instead, the BPA is transferred to your blood stream, which is where we really don’t want to find BPA.

And, many of these fast food establishments staple the receipt to the top of the bag, where you end up holding it until you are ready to eat.  And, lets not forget that many moms (and adults, in general) all carry those “sanitizers” to “wash” their- and their children’s- hands before you eat.  ‘Nuff said.

Note that this research clearly established the levels of BPA in the subject’s blood and urine.  This was not a theoretical study- but one that demonstrated what happens.

Maybe it’s time we go back to using soap and water to wash before we eat.  Trashing those hand sanitizers.  (Bet you never knew they made it possible for transdermal delivery of a slew of small molecules to your body.)  And, finding another method to produce those credit receipts. (eMailing them to your computer is a pretty safe alternative.)

Stay safe.