In 2007 it was reported that among government-funded BPA experiments on lab animals and tissues, 153 found adverse effects and 14 did not, whereas all 13 studies funded by chemical corporations reported no harm. Assessment of potential impact on human health involves measurement of residual BPA in the products and quantitative study of its ease of separation from the product, passage into the human body and residence time and location there.
The studies indicating harm reported a variety of deleterious effects in
rodent offspring exposed in the womb: abnormal weight gain, insulin
resistance, prostate cancer, and excessive mammary gland development.[41]
[wikipedia]
Wow. That might explain a lot.
It is amazing to me how many people will declare that the government should keeps it's stupid fingers off the regulation of industry and private enterprise and just let competition do it's work and we would all be happier, healthier, and better off.
So the industry can do it's own studies of BPA (Bisphenol A) and we, the public, and potential customers of products containing BPA can trust that when they do twelve studies and all of them show that BPA is completely safe, it is damn well completely safe.
So why did the government do 167 studies? Who told them to? Why are they interfering with the marketplace? If customers get cancer from a product, you can rest assured, sales are bound to decline.
This government study in which 153 of 167 studies found adverse effects... who do you want to believe? The "adverse effects industry" or the company that stands to make a profit by selling you the stuff?
The Republican primaries almost lead one to believe that there are legitimate reasons to consider a world in which corporations simply behave as they wish to and consumers have the might and wherewithal to prevent them from wrecking havoc on our lives with impunity. I say "impunity" because the idea that de-regulation will stop at the free market is absurd: the Republicans are fighting this battle on many fronts and one of their pet projects is to emasculate class action lawsuits and restrict the rights of consumers to seek redress when defective products cause harm or economic or environmental hardships.
