The dangers of BPA (bisphenol-A) have been all over the news lately. In fact, one of my recent parenting tips was a guest post about BPA free bottles.

So if you are anything like me, you are standing in front of your open kitchen cabinet staring at the rainbow of your investment in BPA inside and seriously debating whether you should throw every last one away.

But then what? Obviously, the bottles must be replaced. Kids need them for sports and school - and hey, you were supposed to be doing something good for the environment by buying reusable bottles in the first place, right?

So what replacements can you buy that are BPA free bottles? The last thing I want to do is run out and buy new water bottles, only to find out their are equally as dangerous. So, I have been reading up on the subject and this is what I have learned.

• First, single use PET water bottles - the kind you buy bottled water in (like Evian and Poland Spring) are meant to be single use only. Apparently this plastic degrades over time and is also difficult to clean. My take is that because of their disposable nature, even though they are recyclable, they are not the best choice for the environment. Yet they are very convenient.
• Polycarbonate bottles the clear, often colorful, hard plastic variety, are the kind to be weary of. These bottles may contain a harmful chemical. The ones that contain BPA may be marked with a number 7 recycling code or the letters PC or possibly both. Here is the confusing part - there apparently is such a thing as BPA free polyethersulfone. These bottles will be marked a number 7 recycling code but not the PC.
• A softer plastic bottle is made from a plastic called HDPE, usually marked with a recycling code of number 2. These bottles are generally not clear in color. At this point no health problems are known with this type of plastic. The same goes for bottles marked with a recycling code of number 5.
• Stainless steel seems to be the best alternative, with no leaching of chemicals at all.

Most of my information is from two articles that I read. One was called Freshen Up Your Drink on page 65 of the March 24, 2008 issue of Time Magazine and the other was from an article entitled A new focus on plastic ingredient in bottles and cans on page 10 of the May 2008 issue of Consumer Reports.

OK - stainless steel bottles seem to be the way to go. One such brand is Klean Kanteen Stainless Steel Water Bottles. I purchased one of these bottles and was very happy with it. The downside is that the stainless steel bottles are more expensive than the plastic variety. And if you have forgetful children, well, at this price you don’t want to be leaving these bottles behind.

Another brand of metal water bottles that I considered but ultimately rejected was Sigg. These bottles are popping up everywhere as an environmentally sound alternative to plastic water bottles. The Sigg bottles are made from recyclable and reusable aluminum. However, the inside of the Sigg bottle is coated with a lining. Does this lining contain BPA - the very thing that I am trying to avoid? The answer is unclear. This informative article at TreeHugger.com attempts to answer that question and even interviewed the Sigg CEO Steve Wasik. It seems that Mr. Wasik danced around that answer because the formula for the lining is top secret or “confidential” as he puts it. To his credit, Sigg did hire an independent lab to evaluate the water bottles and the lab found no detectable BPA in new Sigg bottles or in considerably used Sigg bottles that were 2 years old. This gives me some level of comfort but I still just want to know if the product that I am buying contains BPA or not. And this “confidential” stuff seems a bit shady and does not give me any kind of confidence.

Finally, I just saw an ad today for Camelbak BPA Free Better Bottles. Now it just so happens that one of what may now be considered a Camelbak BPA Full Not So Better Bottle is sitting on my shelf. Given the recent BPA awareness Camelbak has reformulated its own offerings. The Camelbak BPA Free Better Bottles are similar in appearance to the old polycarbonate bottles - meaning that they are made of a clear, colorful, hard plastic. But the new version does not contain BPA. They are actually made from a New Tritan material. Hmmmm. Call me old fashioned or once bitten twice shy, but since I have no idea what a New Tritan material really is, I am reluctant to try it. Who knows what health issues may surface with these down the road.

Do you now understand my confusion with BPA free bottles? I cannot even offer any parenting tips on which bottle to buy. To me, the best choice is the stainless steel bottle, despite the cost. Maybe tomorrow I’ll offer up some parenting advice on how to cultivate responsibility in children so they won’t lose their expensive water bottles.

Congratulations to Chefdruck, Linda, and Theresa for winning the NeenMachine.com Disney DVD - The Classic Caballeros Collection - giveaway!

You will be receiving an email from me shortly.

Disney DVD - The Classic Caballeros Collection - A Review

Last week I announced a new giveaway on this site - the Classic Caballeros Collection featuring two movies: Saludos Amigos and The Three Caballeros. (By the way - one of my parenting tips is to enter all family related giveaways! And time is running out on this one - the deadline to enter is midnight tonight!) This Disney DVD was newly released on April 29, 2008.

Over the weekend I had the opportunity to watch this Disney DVD myself. It has been a long time since I have watched “classic” Disney featuring old time favorites like Goofy and Donald Duck, so I found this DVD to be very nostalgic and eye opening at the same time.

The first movie included on this Disney DVD is Saludos Amigos. This film was originally released in 1942 - back when the world was a big place. There is a short clip showing Walt Disney and a team of eighteen cartoonists boarding a plane and heading south to the Latin American countries of Argentina, Brazil, and Chile. I, as a parent, honestly enjoyed this brief history lesson the most. To see the world as it was back then, and to imagine the enormity of such a trip when world travel was still novel and foreign countries were still shrouded in mystery was very interesting. In fact, one of the bonus features on this Disney DVD was an excerpt from a CBC interview with Walt Disney and it turns out that the U.S. Government wanted to send Disney to South America as goodwill ambassadors. Disney refused under that pretense but agreed to go to gather material for cartoons - which is what he did. And the result is - Saludos Amigos.

But I digress. The movie Saludos Amigos is actually a compilation of four short films. Each film explores a different region of South America and presents the geography and culture of each place in an enjoyable cartoon that is not only entertaining but also educational.

The first short film features Donald Duck at Lake Titicaca located on the border of Bolivia and Peru. Here dwell the descendants of ancient Inca civilization.

The second film explores the Andes in Chile. Pedro, a little plane, has the responsibility of picking up a mail delivery. He must brave the elements that are typical to this region in order to collect his cargo and arrive home safely.

The third short film features cowboy Goofy who is transformed into his Argentine counterpart - the gaucho. As Goofy explores the Argentine Pampas he entertains the audience with the funny antics that he is famous for. Here is a short clip from this part of Saludos Amigos:

And the fourth segment of Saludos Amigos stars José Carioca, an animated parrot created by Disney for this particular film. Putting rhythm into the audience with a little Latin Samba, José Carioca takes us on a trip to Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.

The second feature on this Disney DVD is The Three Caballeros. I was less impressed with this movie than the first one. The beginning of The Three Caballeros is similar to Saludos Amigos where Disney characters go out and explore foreign lands. South America is featured as well as Mexico. And yes, this film combines both education and entertainment as well. However, towards the end on The Three Caballeros, Donald becomes a little “girl” crazy and a good portion of the movie is devoted to Donald’s infatuation with pretty women. What keeps it interesting to me is, again, the historical perspective. Donald’s exploits may not be politically correct in this day and age, but this film was made sixty odd years ago and what is pictured is a sign of the times.

These classic animated films make you appreciate the forward thinking of Walt Disney and all that he has done to make the entertainment industry what it is today.

A Green Giveaway

It must be giveaway week around here! Marianne, author of the excellent blog - A Life More Interesting, is giving a away 3 recycled soda can necklaces.

I am all for helping the environment and this is a very creative way to perform the second “r” - reuse. The necklaces come in three flavors - Coke, Diet Coke, and Dr. Pepper. Curious? Click over to Marianne’s site - she has a picture up. And to enter, shoot her an email telling her which neckace you prefer.

If you are looking for more creative ways to “reuse”, Lifehacker recently conducted a poll and came up with an interesting list of unconventional ways to reuse things that you may otherwise throw out.

Just a shout that Randa at Free Stuff 4 Kids is giving away six of the new-fangled Rubik’s Revolution Game Cubes. Now, by telling all of you, I know what I am doing to my chances of winning - but what can I say?

And if you haven’t already, be sure and enter my Disney DVD giveaway - the newly released Caballeros Collection featuring Goofy and Donald Duck!