The Food and Drug Administration’s Science Board has strongly criticized the agency’s recent ruling that the chemical Bisphenol-A (BPA) is safe.
The panel of scientists, which advises the agency’s commissioner, is only the latest body to raise a red flag against BPA. More than 100 studies have raised serious concerns about the chemical, which is used in baby bottles and food containers.
One study in the Journal of the American Medical Association found that high rates of BPA in the bodies are connected with higher rates of heart disease, liver abnormalities and diabetes. Canada recently banned the use of BPA in baby bottles.
The FDA’s ties to the industries it supposedly regulates were evident in its ruling. The American Plastics Council, which represents BPA manufacturers, funded the two studies the FDA relied on to declare the chemical safe for use in food containers. Although the FDA advisory panel strongly questioned the agency’s ruling on BPA, it left the final say to FDA Commissioner Andrew von Eschenbach.
