Why work with PlastiPure?
What is estrogenic activity (EA)?
What are endocrine disruptors?
What serious health issues can chemicals with EA cause?
How can you be exposed to chemicals with EA?
What about BPA and phthalates?
How did PlastiPure develop its EA-free plastics?
How much would it cost for the industry to transition to EA-free plastics?
What’s being done to ensure chemicals are safe?
Where do I find PlastiPure-Safe™ certified EA-Free products?
Why work with PlastiPure?
While almost all existing plastics today – as well as many cosmetics, silicones, and paper products – release chemicals with estrogenic activity (EA), PlastiPure’s plastics and products are PlastiPure-Safe™ certified EA-Free. Chemicals with EA have been associated with serious health problems, especially with reproductive functions, growth and behavior concerns, and certain cancers. PlastiPure developed the exclusive patents and is the first and only company creating plastics, silicones, papers, and other materials that are PlastiPure-Safe™ certified EA-Free.
What is estrogenic activity (EA)?
Chemicals with EA mimic or block the actions of naturally-occurring estrogen in the human body when these chemicals are ingested through food and beverages, medicine, or cosmetics. Some research has shown this EA-induced hormonal imbalance can cause serious health issues. EA is found or suspected in several thousand chemicals, including many food and beverage packaging materials.
What are endocrine disruptors?
Chemicals with EA are a large part of a group of chemicals known as endocrine disruptors. Endocrine disruptors are chemicals that mimic or block the actions of the body’s natural hormones, like estrogens (the female sex hormones) and androgens (the male sex hormones). The endocrine system is one of the body’s main communication networks, and is responsible for producing the hormones that help control reproduction, growth and development, and behavioral responses. Endocrine disruptors upset these natural processes.
What serious health issues can chemicals with EA cause?
Current research shows estrogenic activity (EA) can cause a broad spectrum of serious health problems, such as:
- altered growth rates
- early puberty in girls
- reduced sperm count in males
- altered functions in reproductive organs in both sexes
- altered behaviors
- obesity
- higher rates of some cancers
How can you be exposed to chemicals with EA?
Almost all existing plastics – as well as many body lotions, cosmetics, silicones, elastomers, and paper products – release chemicals with EA. Plastics produced with chemicals with EA are commonly used in water bottles, baby bottles, food containers, bags, linings for metal food cans, linings for wine and beer fermentation vats, bottle caps and closures, toys, medical devices, dental materials, and many, many other plastic products. Chemicals with EA leach from plastics into the items we consume or use. Exposure can happen whenever chemicals with EA are ingested into the body, typically through food and beverages, medicine, or cosmetics.
What about BPA and phthalates?
Recently, two chemicals with estrogenic activity (EA) have gotten significant public attention: Bisphenol-A (BPA) and phthalates.
- BPA is used to manufacture polycarbonate (hard and clear) plastics, which are often used in food and beverage containers and epoxy resins, which are typically found in dental sealants.
- Phthalates are a class of chemicals used to soften polyvinyl chloride plastics and make them more flexible.
- BPA and phthalates have been highly publicized for their EA, but they’re only two of hundreds of chemicals with EA that are commonly used to produce plastics. So while some companies are promoting their efforts to eliminate BPA and phthalates from their products, they’re leaving in or substituting other chemicals with dangerous levels of EA. Eliminating BPA and phthalates doesn’t eliminate EA, so BPA-free or phthalate-free products are not usually EA-free. In fact, sometimes, the material substituted to make a product BPA-free or phthalate-free shows even more estrogenic activity than the originals.
How did PlastiPure develop its PlastiPure-Safe™ certified EA-Free plastics?
PlastiPure spent millions of dollars over the last decade to develop the technology, intellectual property, and patents to produce its EA-Free plastics. Through our research, we’ve identified thousands of chemicals with EA, and developed ways to avoid these chemicals in our formulations and production methods. In most cases, our processes and formulations can be used within a manufacturer’s existing infrastructure with few key modifications, and the resulting EA-Free products seem physically identical to the older plastics which cause EA.
How much would it cost for the industry to transition to EA-Free plastics?
Manufactured using the same capital equipment and similar processes, most of PlastiPure’s certified EA-Free resins generally cost just pennies more than comparable EA-containing resins. Likewise, most PlastiPure resins add only a few cents to the final plastic product cost when produced at the same quantities as existing EA-releasing products. It would undoubtedly cost the $400 billion plastics industry much less to make systematic changes now rather than piecemeal changes over the coming decades.
What’s being done to ensure chemicals are safe?
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has well-defined tests for carcinogenic, cell death, and toxic effects for chemicals that can contaminate foodstuffs or other products, but at this time doesn’t have approved tests for hormonal effects. According to the FDA itself, more than 3,000 preservatives and additives are included in our nation’s food, but none are required to undergo testing for estrogenic activity (EA), nor are the containers that food and beverages are packaged in. While the National Toxicology Program (NTP), National Institutes of Health (NIH), and other organizations have found issues to date, the FDA is still reconsidering its position with an update expected soon.
With legislation passed banning or limiting certain estrogenic chemicals (e.g. BPA and phthalates), public health warnings beginning to be issued, and more legislation pending, PlastiPure believes that the plastics industry should be ahead of the regulatory and legislative curve and respond to the growing concerns about the health issues of plastics. With the easy implementation of EA-Free materials and products, why not make the safe choice and mitigate the growing liability of producing estrogenic products?
Where do I find PlastiPure-bottled products?
You can find companies using PlastiPure-Safe™ certified EA-Free materials for their products on our Partners page. With many channel and retail products shortly to be introduced to the public, distribution of more and more PlastiPure-Safe™ certified EA-Free products will be widely available soon.