Banner ad


Home

Policy Pick: The Toxin-Free Infants and Toddlers Act

July 13, 2009
 		 Printer-friendly version
Known as The Toxin-Free Infants and Toddlers Act, SB 797 (Pavley - D, Santa Monica & Liu- D, Glendale), is a child safety measure that seeks to protect infants and toddlers from a harmful toxin that leaches into babies' milk and food called bisphenol A (BPA). While most consumers believe that everyday products are tested for dangerous chemicals and determined to be safe by government authorities, the reality is many children's products contain toxic chemicals, such as BPA, that have been shown to cause harm to children's health and the environment.

Sponsored by the Environmental Working Group, SB 797 would prohibit the manufacture, sale, or distribution in commerce of any bottle, cup, or liquid, food, or beverage in a can, or plastic bottle that contains BPA, or that is lined with a material that contains BPA, at a level above 0.1 parts per billion. The bill would also require manufacturers to use the least toxic alternative when replacing BPA in containers.

Facts about BPA include:

  • Originally created as a synthetic sex hormone similar to estrogen, today it is widely used in certain kinds of plastics and epoxy resins, including those commonly found in baby bottles and infant formula cans.
  • BPA has been linked to a number of long-term health impacts such as birth defects, reproductive harm, impaired learning, hyperactivity and breast and prostate cancer.
  • The National Institutes of Health is concerned that BPA exposure in children may lead to problems with brain development, behavior, early puberty, breast cancer, and prostate cancer. Since children's bodies are growing and developing, they are especially vulnerable to the effects of BPA.
  • New research suggests that BPA may interfere with metabolism and lead to obesity, heart disease, and diabetes in humans.

Regulation of BPA in children's products is woefully inadequate and has not kept pace with the explosion of government-funded peer reviewed studies in the last few years, indicating a problem with BPA in food and beverage products. 

Out of concern for children's safety, Canada has banned the use of BPA in baby bottles and is restricting its use in infant formula cans. Many companies have phased out BPA from their products or removed BPA-containing products from their store shelves or both.

It is in the best interest of California to significantly reduce infants' and toddlers' exposure to BPA as soon as possible, and to ultimately eliminate all exposure.

First 5 LA is closely watching SB 797, which has passed through the State Senate and the Assembly Health Committee. It now moves to the Assembly Floor for debate. Please contact Howard Jacobs, government affairs manager, at (213) 482-7555, for more information on SB 797.

‹‹Back to this week's Monday Morning Report