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Plastic containers and linings often leach chemicals into the surrounding environment.  And some of those chemicals, like the endocrine-disrupting bisphenol-A (BPA) and phthalates, may be harmful to your health.

Manufacturers have even begun advertising some products as “BPA-free.” But a recent study found that most plastic products leach endocrine-disrupting chemicals even if they’re labeled “BPA-free!”

The scientists found that 70 percent of common plastic products tested positive for estrogenic activity, and that number rose to 95 percent when the products were subject to real-world conditions such as dishwashing or microwaving.

Time Magazine reports:

 “BPA is particularly worrisome simply because it is so common. Nearly every American has some amount of BPA in his or her body, in part because plastics are so ubiquitous.”

Sources: Time Magazine March 8, 2011

Environmental Health Perspectives March 2, 2011 (Epub Ahead of Print)

Dr. Mercola’s Comments:

You would think labeling a product “BPA-Free” would be some measure of protection against ingesting this toxic plastic by-product, but it turns out that tests on plastics using this label have not been conducted under real-world conditions like running the plastics through a dishwasher or heating them in a microwave.

 In the “real-world”, 95 percent of all plastic products in the study above tested positive for estrogenic activity, meaning they can still disrupt your hormones even if they carry a BPA-Free label. Even more disconcerting is the finding that BPA-Free plastics in some cases leached more BPA than the non-BPA free plastics.