Study reviews more exposure pathways than previous surveys, also concludes additional research needed on production processes for canned soup, canned meat.
Swiss researchers examining exposure pathways for a common chemical used in plastic containers and linings of cans find infants have the highest estimated levels of Bisphenol A (BPA), with exposures falling with rising age. While estimated levels are well below the Tolerable Daily Intake (TDI) set by European authorities, the findings are important in that BPA is thought to impact human development and is classified as an endocrine disrupting chemical, potentially putting developing infants at risk, as well as fetuses if pregnant mothers are exposed.
The Swiss study examines 17 different sources of potential exposure across nine age/gender groups in the German/Swiss/Austrian population and found the most potentially exposed group is bottle-fed infants from 0-6 months of age. This group had estimated mean dose rates of nearly 0.8 micrograms per kilogram body weight per day, well below the TDI. However "it is of the same order of magnitude as recently reported concentrations that caused low-dose health effects in rodents," according to the authors.
"In general humans in their developmental stages (fetus, infant, child) seem to be exposed more severely than adults," wrote author Natalie von Goetz, Ph.D., senior scientist at the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology in Zurich, along with colleagues Matthias Wormuth, Martin Scheringer, and Konrad Hungerbuehler.
The European Union's TDI for BPA is 50 micrograms per kilogram body weight per day, identical to the risk limit set by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). EPA and the U.S. Food and Drug Administration announced in January they are fast-tracking studies to clarify the research on low-dose effects of BPA exposure.
The study "Bisphenol A: How the Most Relevant Exposure Sources Contribute to Total Consumer Exposure" appears in the March issue of the journal Risk Analysis published by the Society for Risk Analysis.