By Shannon Koehle
EmpowHer.com's Health Reporter

Plastic baby bottle have been used for many generations, but it is still unknown how safe they truly are.

When manufactured, a large portion of baby bottles are made with polycarbonate plastic. However, this plastic is combined with Bisphenol A (BPA), a toxic chemical, to increase heat resistance and durability of the product.

The problem arises when bottles are heated. Heating the product causes trace amounts of BPA to leach into the liquid contained within the bottle.

I just found a link about a test run on the BPA levels in canned food. Turns out the concern comes from the lining in the cans. The most concerning levels were found in canned chicken soup, infant formula, and ravioli.

http://www.treehugger.com/files/2008/04/...

I am concerned about the sippy cups my daughter is using. I need to know what brand & type of sippy cups are BPA-free. I heard there are certain numbers that are marked on the plastic that should be avoided, but it is really hard to look at some of the cups & find the numbers. Can anyone tell me what sippy cups are safe?

Studies have shown that baby bottles made by the major brands Avent, Evenflo, Dr. Brown’s and Disney/First Years leached BPA when heated. BPA is a very dangerous estrogenic compound that has been found to be toxic at low doses and is linked to breast cancer, early onset of puberty and prostate cancer. The Breast Cancer Fund web site is hosting a petition where you can easily sign it and send it on to these big baby bottles manufacturers and let your voice be heard! They need to stop manufacturing bottles with BPA!! Playtex has already stopped, so why won't they??