ENDOCRINE DISRUPTOR CHEMICALS - Plastics and Environmental Sustainability - page 312

(other metals can be used as catalysts for the polycondensation synthesis)
shouldbeinvestigated.Inanyevent,thereportedEDeffectsofbottledwater
cannot be explained entirely on the basis of antimony (Sb) levels.
In the case of PET bottles, the reported evidence is not persuasive enough to
support the notion that any EDCs originate in the bottle and leach out into
water or other contents. A precautionary stance of avoiding the use of PET
for food or beverage is not justified on the basis of available information. An
effort needs to be taken by the industry to unequivocally and quantitatively
express and attribute the sometimes-observed ED activity in PET bottles to
specific modes of contamination.
Comments : The discussion in this chapter suggests some cautions in using
household plastics in contact with food. Avoid using food, water, or other
beverage packaged in PC containers (or products with recycling symbol
#7) especially where they have been stored for a period of time. Avoid
consuming beverages in plastic bottles (PC bottles in particular) or food in
plastic containers, left in warm interior of automobiles over long periods of
time, especially if routinely exposed to sunlight. The caution is particularly
important for pregnant mothers in view of recent findings linking BPA
exposure to increased risk of miscarriage (Lathi et al., 2014).
Do not heat food in original metal cans they were packaged in and do
not reuse the cans subsequently for other food-contact uses. Do not re-use
plasticfoodpackages,containers,bottles,orbagstoheatfoodinmicrowave.
The “microwaveable” packaging is not necessarily meant for repeated use. If
plastic film is used to cover food being microwaved, it should not touch the
food while in the oven. Remove frozen food from original packaging before
microwave defrosting. Plastic film should never be used in an air oven.
Plasticized plastic wraps (such as PVDC cling wrap used in early product 14 )
should not be left in contact with food, especially food rich in fat (Coltro
et al., 2014) for extended durations especially at higher temperatures. Most
cling films today are LDPE.
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