In the News
“ In the wake of an oil spill in U.S. waters that is likely the worst environmental disaster in history, I hope the public is more likely to
pay attention to what happens in the oceans. ” — DARIA SICILIANO, PAGE 10
Life Marine census takers’ latest tally
Snif;ng out lemurs on birth control
Atom & Cosmos Galactic heart of darkness
Earth Listening to ancient chinchilla poop
Receipts a large
and little-known
source of BPA
Studies raise alarm about
exposure to hormone mimic
STORY ONE
By Janet Raloff
Cash register and other receipts may expose people to substan- tial amounts of bisphenol A, a hormone-mimicking chemical that has been linked with a host of
potential health risks, according to a trio
of recent studies. Each offers preliminary
evidence that a large number of retail outlets print sales receipts on certain types of
heat-sensitive, or thermal, paper that use
BPA as a color developer.
Two of the new studies also show that
the BPA coating easily rubs off onto fingers. And one found evidence that BPA
from receipts may penetrate skin.
The pollutant, which mimics the hormone estrogen and is used in the making
of some plastics, has been tied to health
risks from behavior problems in children
to obesity and heart ailments. In animals,
in utero exposures put moms and their
offspring at risk for metabolic diseases.
Based on growing concern about
possible risks from BPA exposure,
especially in children, the federal government recently warned parents about
where their families were most likely to
encounter the chemical. Store receipts
did not make the list, although there
have been hints for years that thermal
receipt paper could be a rich source.
The BPA-receipts data offer “further
evidence that bisphenol A, a dangerous
chemical, has become all too prevalent in
consumer products despite the fact that
it is linked to harmful health effects in
humans,” says U.S. Sen. Dianne Feinstein
of California. She notes that “industry is
fighting against legislation that would
restrict the use of BPA,” including a bill
that she coauthored.
Chemist John Warner learned about
the chemistry of thermal- and pressure-sensitive papers while working for
Polaroid years ago. Manufacturers lay a
powdery coating containing BPA, a dye
and a solvent onto one side of a piece of
paper. When heat or pressure is applied,
the coating’s constituents merge to
release the ink’s color, he explains.
Warner largely forgot about the process until BPA hit the news, big time,
about a decade ago. Wondering if thermal paper still used the chemical, he
and his university students ran
periodic assays — which
invariably turned up
receipts with substantial
amounts.
On July 28, Warner and
colleagues at the Warner
Babcock Institute for Green
Chemistry in Wilmington, Mass.,
formally published their data for the
first time. Of 10 receipts recently collected in the Boston area, six contained
1.09 to 1.70 percent BPA by mass. Another
two contained 0.30 to 0.83 percent
BPA; the final pair had no measurable
amounts. The findings appear online in
Chemistry in Wilmington, Mass., formally published their data for the first time. Of 10 receipts recently col- lected in the Boston area, six contained 1.09 to 1.70percent BPAbymass. Another two contained 0.30 to 0.83 percent BPA; the final pair had no measurable amounts. The findings appear online in
Studies have found that handling ther-
mal paper receipts can expose people
to a hormone-mimicking chemical.
Green Chemistry Letters and Reviews.
A Swiss study published online July 11
in Analytical and Bioanalytical Chemistry assayed 13 European sales receipts.
Eleven contained BPA in quantities
ranging from 0.8 to 1. 7 percent of the
paper’s mass.
And that BPA rubbed off easily, notes
study coauthor Koni Grob, an analytical
chemist with the Official Food Control
Authority of the Canton of Zurich. Just
holding the receipt paper deposited substantial BPA onto dry fingers.
“The shocking thing,” he says, “is what
happened when I applied a bit of BPA
onto my fingers with ethanol [alco-hol]. After two hours it
had disappeared.
Totally.” He
believes
hol]. After two hours it
had disappeared.
Totally.” He
believes
