Is it important to have a BPA free blender jar? Glass or plastic? Here are the facts... You decide!
The usual blender jar materials are made with glass, cheap plastic, or BPA-free copolyester.
For over 50 years, BPA, Bisphenol A, has been used in plastics, mainly polycarbonate plastics. From the beginning many people have suspected BPA.
Unfortunately, we are exposed to this chemical in our food and beverages every day. Some of the products that contain BPA, unless noted, are baby bottles, dental fillings, water bottles, and eyeglass lenses. It even is used in the coating inside canned foods and beverages!
BPA used to be used as a fungicide. Would you lick a tent sprayed with flame retardant? Well... BPA is a precursor to tetrabromobisphenol A, a flame retardant! Wow!
The Lang study was conducted in 2008 on the dangers of BPA in the human body by researching the urine levels of almost 1500 people. They found an association of high levels of BHA in the urine and higher chances of heart disease, diabetes, and high levels of certain liver enzymes. Of course, this is a preliminary study and needs to be verified with other future studies.
Unfortunately, our infants and children have the highest exposure to BPA! Estimated daily intake of BPA in adults is 0.008–1.5 µg/kg. Estimated daily exposure of BPA in infants 0-6 months (formula fed) is 1-11 µg/kg! While infants 0-6 months (breast fed) intake is 0.2-1 µg/kg.
There is a very high level of BPA in formula fed babies! This is due to the liquid formula stored in cans that have BPA in the inner lining and also because of the baby bottles.
Many people know that breast feeding is the best way to nurture a infant’s growth. But not everyone can do that. So... to decrease your child’s exposure to BPA read the following tips.
1. Nurse as much as you can.
2. Ask your formula provider about the inner lining of the formula container. Demand an honest answer. If the it does contain BPA, look into other formulas.
3. Use powdered formula over liquid. The liquid leaches the BPA off the lining and into the formula.
4. Hand wash the baby bottles with mild detergents. Do not put high heat liquids in the bottle.
1. Avoid canned foods with BPA in the lining.
2. Buy BPA free containers for your liquids. This includes your drinking water bottles and your gallon jugs that you refill at the store.
3. Hand wash the plastics with mild detergent instead of the dishwasher.
4. Never microwave anything in these plastics.
Well... I was hoping that you would ask!
Now that you have some of the facts about BPA, you can decide if it is worth it to buy a blender that has a glass or BPA free plastic blender jar. You are now empowered to make a decision about BPA and weigh out the good and the bad.
If you do purchase or already own a plastic blender jar with BPA, here are some good guidelines to follow to minimize your exposure to BPA.
1. Do not wash your blender in the dishwasher. I know... Dishwashers are convenient. But the hot water lets the BPA leach out of the plastic into your smoothies. Yuck!
2. Do not let hot liquids, like soups, sit in the blender jar for long periods of time.
3. If you must use canned fruit, use BPA free canned fruit. The better option is fresh or frozen fruit. They don’t contain any kind of BPA.
You can look into blenders that have glass jars. A big plus with glass is that they do not contain BPA. Oster Classic Beehive
and Hamilton Beach are a couple blenders have glass jars.
Unfortunately, these blenders do not have the horsepower in the motor to give you the delicious smoothies, soups, and nut creams that make eating healthfully a breeze. Read more on choosing the best blender motor.
If you want a high powdered blender and a BPA free jar, check out a Blendtec Total Blender or a Vitamix 5200. Both of these companies have worked hard to create their jars with no BPA.
I hope that you can decide on what blender will fit your family best!
References
http://cerhr.niehs.nih.gov/chemicals/bisphenol/BPAFinalEPVF112607.pdf
http://jama.ama-assn.org/cgi/content/full/300.11.1303
http://www.newscientist.com/article/dn14739-plastic-bottle-chemical-linked-to-heart-disease.html