Telephone Press Briefing: Thursday, August 2, Noon Eastern Standard Time

A Collection of Studies, Including Reviews and New Results, Strengthen Human Health Concerns about Bisphenol A

38 Leading Scientists Warn of Possible Adverse Health Outcomes
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Five new review papers accepted for publication in the peer-reviewed journal Reproductive Toxicology, published by Elsevier, broaden scientific concerns about potential adverse health effects of very low levels of BPA exposure, especially during development. Three of the reviews, focused on an extensive animal literature, examine outcomes including early stage breast and prostate cancer, decreased sperm counts and early puberty in mice and rats, at exposure levels comparable to those experienced by most Americans. Unfortunately, there are very few epidemiological studies of human effects of BPA to determine how well this extensive animal data will translate to human diseases/dysfunctions. One review reports that BPA is ubiquitous in Americans’ daily lives; common exposure sources are the linings of food cans and some plastic containers, including some popular water and baby bottles. A key new finding of the reviews which include original analysis of over 700 research articles, is that Americans are currently exposed to BPA at much higher levels than previously thought; levels that routinely exceed the federal government’s “safe exposure” standard for humans. Moreover, in a consensus statement also to appear in Reproductive Toxicology, 38 leading BPA research scientists from around the world agree that the range of exposures that most Americans experience are higher than those that cause a wide range of adverse health effects in animals.

The journal will publish simultaneously a new study which reveals that BPA is functionally similar to diethylstilbestrol (DES), a synthetic estrogen banned long ago for use by pregnant women for causing reproductive tract problems. This experimental animal study, led by Retha Newbold, is the first to link developmental exposure to bisphenol A to diseases such as uterine fibroids and precancerous changes in the reproductive tract as well as cystic ovaries, problems commonly diagnosed in middle-aged women. Some of these changes in experimental animals have been previously found in the daughters of mothers who took DES during their pregnancies.

WHO:
  • Jerrold J. Heindel, Ph.D., Division of Extramural Research and Training, National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences
  • Retha R. Newbold, M.S., Division of Intramural Research, National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences
  • Frederick vom Saal, Ph.D., Professor, Reproductive Biology and Neurobiology, University of Missouri-Columbia.
WHAT:        Telephone press briefing (download audio) to describe new BPA research findings and their potential implications for human health, as well as content of BPA experts’ consensus statement.
 
WHEN: 12 noon Eastern Standard time, Thursday August 2, 2007.
 
HOW: Teleconference call, to dial in call: (800) 909-5202 or (785) 830-7975 Password: BPA. Please RSVP to contacts below.
 

To request copies of the peer-reviewed studies and BPA consensus statement and/or contact info for experts, please contact Gabriela Silvani (gabriela@ems.org or 202-463-6670, ext. 224) or Amy Kostant (amy@ems.org or 202-463-6670, ext.236).

Note: The papers have all been accepted for publication but will undergo final editing by the journal which might result in small, but not substantive changes.