Does plastic use cause cancer?

Does plastic use cause cancer?

Plastic, as sinful as it is for our environment, possesses the possibility to be a threat to our body in the form of cancer. In recent years, the use of plastic and its exposure to our health through various products turned out to be notably unsafe. So we need to dig deeper on this issue to resolve such severe concerns since plastic comes in use with every one of our needs. From bowls to water bottles, plastic is accessible at every corner of the utility department.

According to a study, few chemicals in plastic dissolve some plastic into the food and beverages we consume. Those chemicals result in severe health problems like metabolic disorders and decreased fertility. It can get worse if the plastic is exposed to heat as it elevated the damaging chemicals at a faster and increased amount into the items than at a normal state.

Today, we’ll uncover the fact if plastic use can lead to cancer. And if we can do anything to reduce the negative outcomes caused by our health.

What is plastic made of?

Primarily, we must know our subject before claiming it hazardous. Plastics are more complex than we often assume. Plastics care not just one thing, they are of many different kinds and possess their different names based on their composition. For example, polypropylene, polyethylene, polyethylene, polycarbonate, and terephthalate. All of them contain a variety of chemicals with different properties like antioxidants, plasticizers, and colorants.

In general, plastic use and exposure have caused severe damage to people. What’s important to note here is many plastic containers publicly state that their product contains chemicals but in small amounts indicating there’s no chance to worry. But if we continue to use the product repeatedly for various days, months, and years, the effects would lead us to various health hazards. The initial amount of the product might look small but continued use only helps to add more each day.

Along with chemical exposure, plastic products put pregnant women at a greater risk. The harmful chemical release reached the exposed fetus in the womb that affects them severely. Out of the most known detrimental chemicals are phthalates and bisphenol A (BPA). The two chemicals are called endocrine disruptors and are known for interfering with the hormonal system in our body.

Here’s how both these plastic’s chemical impact our body

Phthalates

Phthalates are a group of chemicals used to make polyvinyl chloride (PVC) to make plastic more flexible, plant, and hard to break. After consuming them via food items, these chemicals work as male reproductive toxicants. It also affects women. These chemicals are prominent for making vinyl plastics soft and flexible, used in multiple product manufacturing. We are under the highest exposure of these chemicals since it is present in toys to medical devices. Adult women, especially, are under higher threat compared to men since phthalates used in various cosmetics like shampoo, soaps, and body washes.

Bisphenol A

BPA comes under the use of making hard types of plastic called polycarbonate often used in making containers for storing food and beverages, such as water bottles, lunch boxes, and storage cans. Recently, Bisphenol A is getting a lot of attention due to its adverse health effects in humans and rodents. The chemical is lately in controversy for its possible impacts on the brain and prostate glands of fetuses, infants, and kids. In 2011, a study proved the presence of high levels of BPA in pregnant women and their infants would be more likely to exhibit anxiety, hyperactivity, and depression.

These two chemicals are in attention due to their growing negative impacts on health, there are many other chemicals in plastics with similar impacts including antioxidants, and colorants.

Do microwave plastics worsen our health?

Heating plastic is always a disadvantage to health than eating out them at natural temperature. So depending on different plastic forms, heating them in a microwave can rigorously release harmful chemicals in the food and beverages stored in it. Foods rich in fat are particularly more likely to increase the release of chemicals.

Many plastics claim to be microwave-safe by the FDA. Getting FDA’s approval for claiming your product requires manufacturers to test the container, evaluate the container timing in the microwave, how much anyone is likely to eat out of the container and estimated the temperature of the food inside it. If the amount of chemical released from the container into the food is lower than a maximum allowable amount set, the product is free to be called microwave-safe. But ultimately, the product is never fit or free of chemicals.

Hence even after being aware of the plastic type and additives used, the safety advice would be to avoid the use of heating food in plastic.

Are regular plastics non-toxic for use?

Microwaves elevate the chemical release in the food items from plastic, not the only way the food gets contaminated by chemicals from plastics. Food and beverages stored in plastic containers, even without microwaves release chemicals in the food items. Plastic’s abundant chemical release gets altered if kept in a heating environment or under the sunlight. Tomatoes and other acidic food easily absorb chemicals from the lining of the food cans. Apart from food containers, chemicals containing home decor things containing phthalates, release gases in the air over time, increasing the chances of inhaling the harmful chemicals. Even plastic vapors can release chemicals in the food, even if the plastics are not in contact with it. Vapourized plastic containers release their gases into the food item when used as a plastic splatter lid over a bowl in the microwave.
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Are plastics free of phthalates and BPA considered safe?

It’s difficult to say if other types of plastics, if not phthalates and BPA, are safe. Companies who claim to have eliminated the problematic chemical from its product ingredient, its replacement is just another chemical which we don’t know much about. It can or is almost equally toxic.
It’s a common tactic used by companies to replace a controversial chemical with a new one. The new chemical has no evidence supporting its benefit or risk-free features so it’s never a safer option. Usually, companies switch BPA with a different chemical called bisphenol S or BPS. Earlier, there was less information available on the internet about its state of use but recently, it turned to be detrimental as well.

In 2011, the Environmental Health Perspective published a study testing commercial plastic products that claimed to be BPA-free. The result proved that almost all of them released chemicals with estrogenic activity. Some of them even had more estrogenic activity than BPA.

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Steps to protect yourself

Avoiding plastic use at all costs seems impossible due to every product found made in plastic. Limiting plastic use as much as possible, especially when a woman is pregnant and along with food items can help greatly.

How to limit the use of plastics:

• Replace your plastic water bottles with your steel, glass, or ceramic water bottle.
• Decrease the amount of canned food you consume and your child used daily.
• Go with children bottles with labels that are free of BPA.
• Don’t recycle carbonless receipts at cash register receipts as receipts with BPA can spread the BPA onto other problems made with recycled products like napkins and toilet paper.
• Use plastics with the number 7 recycling symbol on the bottom. Don’t stick to plastic without a label saying “PLA” or a leaf symbol on it as it may contain BPA.

How to limit chemical exposure from plastics?

Stop cooking food in plastic containers or use them in roasting or steaming: As discussed earlier, plastic under heat is prone to realize higher amounts of chemicals into food than at regular temperature. Limit the use of microwaves or even if you do, use a glass container to heat or bake anything.

Switch to glass, enamel-covered metal, stainless steel pots, pans, porcelain, and containers for storing food and beverages or even when the food item is hot.

Lookout for Plastics with recycling symbols of 2, 4, and 5 to use: Plastics label with recycling symbol 7 and along with a leaf symbol is good to go.

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