family

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.

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