Component of plastic bottles to heart disease and diabetes

British scientists have found that bisphenol A (BPA) - a chemical used in the manufacture of plastics for bottles and food packaging - can increase the risk of diabetes and cardiovascular disease in humans. This - the first large-scale study on the effect of bisphenol in the human body. Previous studies in animals have shown that high concentrations of BPA have estrogenic effects similar to those of female sex hormones and therefore have a negative impact on the concentration of sperm cells and fetal development, and the risk of prostate cancer and other diseases. However, in the manufacture of plastics used much smaller amounts of BPA, and the results of subsequent numerous studies were highly controversial. These studies generally relates to the effects on the reproductive system. Scientists at the Medical School in Exeter Peninsyula decided to evaluate the possible association between BPA and cardiovascular disease and diabetes. For this purpose, they examined data from questionnaires and urine samples from 1455 adults who had previously taken part in the National Health and Nutrition USA. Previous analyzes of these samples showed that 92.6% of them contain a defined amount of BPA. Dividing the urine sample into four groups according to the concentration of BPA and compared them to the questionnaires, the researchers found that people in the group with a maximum of a chemical in the urine of three times higher risk of heart disease and 2.4-times - the risk of diabetes compared with the minimum concentration of BPA. This function is retained and the introduction of changes in other risk factors. Age, sex, race, education, income, smoking, and body mass index Furthermore, a high BPA was associated with elevated liver enzymes, giving a possible liver damage. Chemical bond with the risk of stroke, cancer or arthritis has not been established. However, according to the head of David Meltzer (David Melzer), the results of the study can not be interpreted unambiguously. First, BPA is rapidly excreted (within a day), and their concentration in a single sample is difficult to assess the chronic effects. Second, the metabolism of BPA in liver disease and obesity may be injured, that is, it is not sure which came first - a disease or a high concentration of BPA in the urine. In any case, further research is needed on this topic.