BPA Free Kids Act Passes Senate, Assembly Committee

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Wisconsin Would Be Third State to Ban Toxic Chemical

WISPIRG

Madison, WI – Today, the Wisconsin State Senate unanimously passed legislation that will ban the sale and manufacture of baby bottles and sippy cups containing toxic bisphenol-A (BPA) in Wisconsin.  The Assembly Consumer Protection Committee also unanimously passed the Assembly companion bill, AB405. 

“Toxic chemicals should not be in children’s products; today’s votes get us one step closer to a toxic-free future,” said Bruce Speight, WISPIRG Director.  “We applaud our state leaders for taking unanimous, bi-partisan action to ban this toxic chemical in children’s products.” 

The BPA Free Kids Act(SB271, AB405) prohibits the manufacture and sale at the wholesale level of empty baby bottles and sippy cups that contain BPA.  It also requires that these bottles and sippy cups be clearly labeled as being “BPA Free.”

BPA is a synthetic sex hormone that can disrupt the human endocrine system, which regulates growth and development.  In the past decade, studies link even tiny doses of BPA to serious adverse health effects including breast and prostate cancer, heart disease, thyroid disease, early puberty in girls, attention deficit and hyperactivity disorders, diabetes and obesity.  93% of Americans tested by the Centers for Disease Control had detectable levels in their urine. 

Children are the most exposed (through baby bottles, sippy cups, etc.) to bisphenol A, at a critical time in their growth and development.  Since BPA mimics the hormone estrogen, fetuses and children are most vulnerable to exposure to BPA.  The CDC study mentioned above found that children had the highest levels of BPA, followed by teens and adults. 

On January 15, 2010, U.S. Food and Drug Administration announced that they share the concern expressed more than a year ago by the National Toxicology Project for Bisphenol A’s impact on human development.  In their Friday announcement, the agency registered concern for “the potential effects of BPA on the brain, behavior, and prostate gland in fetuses, infants, and young children.” 

“State leaders should be applauded for taking action to protect our most vulnerable consumers from toxic BPA.  Parents after all should not have to be chemists to know if their children’s products have toxic chemicals,” concluded Speight.