Report: BPA Found in Canned Foods Marketed to Children

With the dangers of bisphenol A (BPA) exposure becoming increasingly evident to American consumers, a recent report issued by the Breast Cancer Fund is a major cause for concern, especially for parents.

We've all seen more and more products, from sippy cups and infant toys to water bottles, labeled as free of BPA, but one product where the chemical has been found to be ever-present is in canned food .

The Breast Cancer Fund is a non-profit dedicated to identifying and raising awareness about environmental exposures to chemicals that have been shown to cause cancer and other health ailments.

The organization's report, "BPA in Kids' Canned Food," found that six different types of canned foods marketed to kids contain BPA. Two samples each of the following products were tested, with the amount of BPA in each indicated by parts per billion (PPB):

• Campbell's Disney Princess Cool Shapes, Shaped Pasta with Chicken in Chicken Broth - 114 PPB
• Campbell's Toy Story Fun Shapes, Shaped Pasta with Chicken in Chicken Broth - 81 PPB
• Earth's Best Organic Elmo Noodlemania Soup, USDA Organic - 38 PPB
• Annie's Homegrown Cheesy Ravioli, USDA Organic - 31 PPB
• Chef Boyardee Whole Grain Pasta, Mini ABC's & 123's with Meatballs - 20 PPB
• Campbell's Spaghettios with Meatballs - 13 PPB

Parents may be surprised to learn that BPA is used in the can lining of not only conventional canned soups, but organic soups as well. The chemical leaches into the food in the can, and is thus consumed. Earth's Best and Annie's Homegrown are companies that tout ethically-sourced food and environmental stewardship, but their packaging could nonetheless contribute to the same myriad of health problems as conventional processed foods.

BPA has been found to be an endocrine disruptor that mimics the effects of estrogen in the body. According to the Breast Cancer Fund, BPA has been linked to breast and prostate cancer, infertility, early puberty in girls, type-2 diabetes, obesity and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder.

Earlier this year, the Breast Cancer Fund sponsored another study regarding BPA. Five families were given only fresh food for three days, and their BPA levels were found to have decreased by an average of 66 percent. But when the families returned to their normal diets, their BPA levels consequently increased.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 93 percent of Americans have BPA in their bodies. Exposing children to this chemical, not to mention the thousands of other carcinogenic chemicals in our environment, is a risky gamble.

While to eliminate BPA from use in toys, bottles and food packaging, the FDA ruled in 2008 that BPA is safe, though it announced plans last year to devote $30 million to research on BPA.

The president's Cancer Panel that the FDA's findings were based on selected industry-sponsored studies. The panel noted that there was also "alleged undue influence by industry lobbyists" involved, with a international consortium of academic, government and industry experts rejecting the assessment as "incomplete and unreliable."

The are very real, and as parents, it's in my opinion wise to avoid products that contain the chemical. That means boycotting canned products like those in the Breast Cancer Fund study, and instead making your own soup, pasta and vegetables from fresh ingredients for your kids to enjoy.