Wednesday, September 17, 2008

HEATH ALERT : PLASTIC BOTTLES, HEART TROUBLE AND DIABETES.

These are common household items that many of us will come across in our daily lives. Milk bottles shown here will also represent all the sportmen drink bottles that we all have. The screw drivers also represent all the tools and appliances that we have at home. All these common household items contain plastics and epoxy resins to various degree. These plastics contain a substance called "Bisphenol A " or BPA for short. A recent analysis of blood samples taken from health American adults show that 93& of adults in America have blood levels of BPA, telling us how frequent we come into contact with plastics in our lifetime. What is more important is that elevated levels of BPA is associated with a 63% increase in the incidence of heart disease, and 39% increase in the incidence of diabetes. In those who have heart disease, there is a 40% increase incidence of heart attacks ( meaning that the plaques are usually unstable ). Therein lies the health danger. As a health problem, can you imagine, if 93% of 270 million healthy Americans have BPA detected in their blood and 10%, or 27 million have increase blood levels of BPA. 60% of 27 million is about 15 million have heart disease from BPA exposure, and 6 million will get a heart attack. Can you appreciate the problem? This problem is far bigger than late stent thrombosis with the use of DES.
Of course the plastics lobby will deny and say that plastics are safe and necessary. They have their own " safety " data too.
It is true that this findings of the dangers of BPA published in the latest issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association, and authored by Dr Ian Lang, is just a paper presenting the evidence. Of course it is not proof and so more studies need to be done. But it surely tells me that I better becareful of all the plastics around me.

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