A while ago I wrote about toxic baby bottles — specifically, baby bottles that leach bisphenol A, a hormone disruptor that is associated with cancers, impaired immune function, early onset of puberty, obesity, diabetes, and hyperactivity, among other problems.
Although the bisphenol A scare is relevant to anyone consuming food and drink from plastic, it was the bottles that most troubled me. Before that post, I’d been regularly using baby bottles that leach the stuff, according to the Guide to Safer Plastics.
But after that post? I went ahead and ordered glass baby bottles from here. (In case they’re sold out, as they’re selling out everywhere, you can also order them here. And here. And here.
(Did the glass bottles break, you ask? Sure, over time, a number of them did. They could stand up well to a drop on a wood floor, but pavement and ceramic tile were tougher on ‘em. Still, they lasted a surprisingly long time. They also felt really satisfying, too…kind of heavy and solid and old fashioned).
We’ve mostly moved beyond bottles these days, and are now into the sippy cup phase. Again, I find myself lost in the Troubling Land of Terrifying Toxins (I’m not going to report all the scary things about bisphenol-A here. Not today. But if you want to get started on your own frightening journey, with references, start here).
The rest of us, including 5-year-old Merrie (“no, Mom, I’m FIVE-AND-THREE-QUARTERS”) are drinking out of glasses only. Yes, we break glasses from time to time. That’s why we don’t use expensive glasses.
But Baby Charlotte? The girl’s a mess; she needs a sippy cup. Fortunately, Z Recommends did a Sippy Cup Showdown— which reviewed both metal cups for toddlers (including Kleen Kanteen, Sigg, and Thermos Foogo), as well as BPA-free plastic cups.
Worried about any plastic cup, even BPA-free, Ma Green bought the Kleen Kanteen, but doesn’t love it…and so is harboring dreams of becoming a non-toxic sippy cup mogul (keep me on your press list when you do, Ma!). Debra Lynn Dadd seems to like it a little better…though she’s bummed that it’s made in China.
Truth be told, it looks like the best combination of non-toxic and functional isn’t yet on the market…These guys won’t be selling the Safe Sippy until next month. (hey, Safe Sippy folks…if you want to send a few advance products my way, Baby Charlotte and I will be happy to review ‘em!)
In the meantime, I decided to go for the Kleen Kanteen Sippy Cup, Spout, and Adaptor combo. But I also decided to get some non-sippy cups, including these tiny ceramic mugs (speech pathologists and dentists everywhere should be thrilled).
If you’re already stocked full of sippy cups — or, for non-parental types, ANY kind of plastic foodware — be sure to check the bottom of the cup for the number plastic it’s made from. If it’s #s 1, 2, 4, or 5, don’t fret too much. If it’s #3 or #6, or #7, it probably is worth replacing. Scratched or worn plastic containers are definitely worth replacing. Don’t use plastic for hot foods or drink…and never heat anything inside plastic.
And, um, sorry folks, but plastic’s likely to leach in the dishwasher; hand-wash to be safe.
Update: related post on how and why things are changing, at Toxic Plastic & BPA: A Cleaner Plate Club Bedtime Story.
Have you tried these? We have the Foogoo straw cups and they stay cold in the hot Virginia sun ALL DAY LONG.
Oops. Here’s the link… http://www.thermos.com/product_catalog.aspx?CatCode=Foog&SubcategoryID=43
I bought the Kleen Kanteen sippies a little less than a year ago, and so far they’re a hit. They are a little heavy, but my girls are 4 and 2 and seem to handle them ok. As long as we make sure everything’s snapped in tight, they rarely leak. I also like that they come apart for easy washing. I recently bought myself a Kleen Kanteen water bottle and LOVE it.
I agree that, at the table, sippies aren’t necessary after a certain age, though. Also, I’m sick over the fact that I used Avent bottles for the better part of a year with my youngest. Oy.
We just went through our plastic cups and threw out two of them due to their plastic numbers. We’ll replace some of the old ones — our two-year-old has inherited her 7-year-old sister’s dishwashered sippy cups, so they are old. Thanks for the heads up.
I do wonder if it makes a dent at all in a place like NYC, where we live. We have been breathing in post-Sept 11 toxins for 6 years now, on top of the city exhaust and factory plumes, and there is increasing evidence that all 8 million of us have been seriously health-compromised. Isn’t that a bigger worry? I recently overheard two NYC moms earnestly discussing the toxic gel packs in the disposable diapers. I guess they are right, but I wanted to grab them and scream, “WE HAVE BIGGER HEALTH RISKS THAN DIAPER GEL PACKS!” I guess you can do what you can do.
Personally, I think the unbreakable sippy cups/lids and “kids” dinnerware is for the most part, unnecessary or only useful for a limited age from a mess standpoint (plastic dangers aside).
Sturdy thick bistro or “jelly jar” type glasses (remember those, I still have my Boris Badenov glass filled with coarse sea salt, topped with a cork disk) are fairly safe for little ones and heavy enough to reduce spills.
My son (& others I know) went from breastfeeding to cups with no bottles or sippy cups(older kids still using sippy cups seemed to have the *worst* table problems, IMO). Drinking from a real glass and using real dishes is what gives a kid practice (although sized for children is good, too). Unbreakables/lids do not provide real practice. Sure, there are a few accidents along the way with breakables/no lids, but the worst accidents are over pretty quickly.
I think using unbreakables for too long just delays the learning experience and gives the kids and parents a false sense of capability (or incapability). Looking at my son’s friends now (age 6-10), just about all of the ones who used sippy cups and bottles and unbreakable dishes (some still do!) for the longest time have the worst table manners of all and leave beverages and snacks plates/bowls all over the house. They can’t use forks and knives effectively and some of them still eat with their fingers way too much and lots of food ends up on the floor. It’s really gross eating with them.
Just my two cents.
I was away and so am only now catching up on your blog, but I must say I am really disappointed that the queen of all things local, natural, chemical-free, unprocessed and certainly not corporate-made would give her babies bottles, instead of breastfeeding them. If you think Monsanto is evil, check out Nestle’s formula branch Carnation. And while pumped breastmilk is better than formula, it still doesn’t compare to straight from the breast - a concept you usually tout when it comes to veggies straight from the ground. I understand everyone’s situation is different, but it does give me pause when I read you railing against plastic cups that are much less harmful than denying your babies mother’s milk.
Miranda - Ouch. I suddenly feel like I want to get my lactation consultant and my pediatrician on here to defend me. For what it’s worth, I did breastfeed both girls. Also, for what it’s worth, I’m president of the board of our local breastfeeding support chapter. I’m not going to go through a detailed medical history here; I’m simply going to say that with Charlotte, there was a failure to thrive diganosis, a long stretch of infant occupational therapy, and months of regular (often several times a week) weight checks and visits with our LC. Sometimes, you do what you can to keep your kid growing.
This is a response from a scientist I recently emailed regarding the BPA situation:
Dear Ms. C,
I apologize for the delay in responding to your question.
As you may be aware, much of the concern for plastic sippy cups and baby bottles has focused on the chemical bisphenol A (BPA) that is used to make polycarbonate plastics. Recently the National Toxicology Program (NTP) Center for the Evaluation of Risks to Human Reproduction (CERHR) organized a panel review of BPA. The primary focus of this review was on potential reproductive and developmental effects rather than cancer. It is worth noting, however, that BPA has not been shown to cause cancer in laboratory animals or humans.
The panel’s greatest level of concern was directed towards possible neural and behavioral effects caused by BPA exposure infancy and childhood. They expressed “some” concern for these types of effects, a moderate level of concern. The panel expressed “minimal” concern that exposure to BPA during infancy and childhood causes reproductive effects, such as accelerations in puberty. A more detailed description of the expert panel conclusions can be found on the CERHR website at http://cerhr.niehs.nih.gov/chemicals/bisphenol/draftBPA_MtgSumm080807.pdf. The CERHR is now considering the expert panel report and other information, such as new scientific studies, in formulating its own conclusions about potential health concerns. Our final evaluation should be available in 2008.
With respect to exposure to bisphenol A via sippy cups: You might want to use the sippy cups and be cautious regarding the temperature they are exposed to (avoid high temperatures), and the way in which you wash them. Also, if they show any signs of we ar or deterioration, you might want to would replace them. Likewise, depending on your level of concern, you might simply switch to drink containers made of glass or a different plastic. These alternatives are available and could provide some peace of mind at what can be an otherwise stressful time, i.e., the raising of a toddler. Plastic containers with a #7 recycle symbol on the bottom may be made of polycarbonate plastic and could result in low levels of exposure to BPA.
I hope this is of some help. Please feel free to contact me again if you have further questions.
With best wishes,
Mike Shelby
Just wanted to give a quick review of Safe Sippy. It seems to leak excessively from under the lid. In addition it is very difficult to suck any liquid (we tried plain water) from the mouthpiece. I found another review online claiming the same experience. I emailed the company asking about these issues rendering the sippy unusable after paying $14 for it. Until they solve these issues, it’s currently worthless, unfortunately. However, I do have high hopes for it! Happy Holidays
Hi, i have a long list of BPA free sippies and bottles on my blog, and I add more to the list when I find others. Here is a link to the post. Hope it helps!
http://amomsblog.wordpress.com/2007/11/06/harmful-plastics-polycarbonate-with-bisphenol-a/
Hi-
I noticed in your post about BPA that you mentioned Playtex products. On behalf of Playtex, I wanted to clarify that the majority of the Playtex feeding & soothing portfolio is BPA-free, as well as all products being Phthalate-free. For a list of all BPA-free Playtex Infant Care feeding products, please see http://www.playtexbaby.com/bpafree/info.html.
Thanks,
Katie on behalf of Playtex
Thanks for the great article. There’s a lot of helpful information in there. I just wanted to let you and others know about a new product I came across. They are called Bevibags. They are completely BPA free. They are disposable drink bags, that you fill yourself. It enables you to fill the bag with whatever you want, instead of having to buy prefilled juice boxes. I can now mix water with whatever juice I want to give my kids and not have to worry about them getting all that sugar from store bought juice boxes. The best part is that they are disposable. No washing, no cleaning. Just use it and throw them away. I found them at http://www.bevibags.com