Return to the Greenhouses & Garden Structures Forum
| Post a Follow-Up
chemical in plastic (polycarbonate) is dangerous
| | |
Posted by Xeramatheum SCz8 (xeramtheum@yahoo.com) on Sun, Apr 17, 05 at 8:53
| Thought this article might be of interest to polycarbonate greenhouse owners. Sure was to me!!! I am wondering now if veggie plants can pick this stuff up!
Bisphenol A, or BPA, has been detected in nearly all human bodies tested in the United States. It is a key building block in the manufacture of hard, clear, polycarbonate plastics, including baby bottles, water bottles and other food and beverage containers. The chemical can leak from plastic, especially when containers are heated, cleaned with harsh detergents or exposed to acidic foods or drinks.
Toxicologists say exposure to man-made hormones skews the developing reproductive systems and brains of newborn animals, and could be having the same effects on human fetuses and young children. |
Here is a link that might be useful: Scientists say evidence mounting that chemical in plastic is dangerous
Follow-Up Postings:
RE: chemical in plastic (polycarbonate) is dangerous
| | |
| We are a product of our environment which is chemically-based. There has always been a trade-off with paper (dioxin exposures) and plastics (biphenols). The list of chemical exposure that we 'tolerate' for the sake of conveniences is lengthy but a few of the worst ones are for our power-harnessing (nuclear, coal, oil). |
RE: chemical in plastic (polycarbonate) is dangerous
| | |
| I guess I better get rid of my food processor with its polycarbonate bowl before my memory gets any worse. All the time I thought being around for 77 years was the cause. Al |
RE: chemical in plastic (polycarbonate) is dangerous
| | |
| Makes you wonder about the new line of plastic bakeware on the market. I still would be more concerned with the trans fats and food preservatives in all that junk food we eat. |
RE: chemical in plastic (polycarbonate) is dangerous
| | |
Al, you remind me of the time our most famous Penn. resident was ambassador to the Court of St. James (London). Although almost everybody else drank tea, Ben Franklin kept to his coffee. One afternoon at tea time, one society matron observed him drinking coffee and sidled over to comment. "That" she sniffed (pointing at the coffee), "is nothing but a slow poison."
"It certainly must be" he replied. (He was about 80 yrs. old at the time.) |
RE: chemical in plastic (polycarbonate) is dangerous
| | |
| Dihydrogen Monoxide has been killing people for years. Accidental inhalation is a serious threat. Yet our government not only has never tried to eliminate its use, it has pipelines running this stuff all over the place. Even the department of defense has tried to utilize it to improve the Navy's ability to wage war. You should write your congressman to see what he or she knows about this dangerous chemical and what they are going to do about it. |
RE: chemical in plastic (polycarbonate) is dangerous
| | |
| So, don't put your greenhouse in the microwave oven. |
RE: chemical in plastic (polycarbonate) is dangerous
| | |
- Posted by Patris 9 Gulf Coast (My Page) on
Sat, Apr 23, 05 at 16:03
| Seems everything we eat, inhale or touch causes cancer, breathing problems or skin rashes etc. etc. As the saying goes, we are all gonna die from something! |
RE: chemical in plastic (polycarbonate) is dangerous
| | |
| This seems to be a new variation on the urban legend about reused plastic bottles causing health problems. Just because you can find a Web site that supports a particular point of view doesn't make it so. All of this stuff is supposed to be so bad for us, and yet the average life expectancy in our country is higher than it has ever been. Al, my mom is 91, and she hasn't thrown out all of her plastic either! As for her memory....she remembers to yell at me when I don't do something she tells me too, just like when I was a kid. Eleanor |
RE: chemical in plastic (polycarbonate) is dangerous
| | |
| There is a big difference between food in contact with a polycarbonate container and vegetable plants in an enclosure composed of polycarbonate (but not touching it). So even if this was a "heath hazard" the hazard resulting from your greenhouse would be near zero. As for beverage bottles (soda, juice, water, etc), those are made of PTFE, not polycarbonate. I know you can buy polycarbonate drinking glasses, but very few food containers are made of polycarbonate. It's too expensive to justify its use in that application. You're more likely to see it used in products like safety glasses, which require high impact strength. |
RE: chemical in plastic (polycarbonate) is dangerous
| | |
| I was in the research and development industry for quite a few years and had some experience in making submittals to the FDA. I learned a lot of times these articles do not give all the info needed. To get to the real meat and bones, it is useful to actually find the scientific journal article. When testing (to comply with any regs or guidelines, ie, FDA) is being done especially a product that may come into contact with a food source, the product is put through EXTREME conditions. I don't know the conditions that this product was put through but I am assuming that it was incredible heat for a generous amount of time and treated with some very toxic chemicals for a long duration. In a greenhouse, the polycarbonate is never going to see these temp extremes and never going to be cleaned with these chemicals. The product spec for polycarbonate states the chemicals which are compatible for cleaning; dishwashing soap, citric acid, etc. Because I am getting ready to dig the foundation for my polycarbonate GH I will check into this study for my own curiousity but I really doubt it will dissuade me from using the product. Don't get me wrong, I am just as paranoid as the next guy about all the toxins and chemicals put into our environment and foods. I'm convinced that the huge corporations combined with the government are partly to blame for the rising increase in cancer rates. That's a whole 'nother subject and can of worms. If I find any info, I would be happy to pass it along to any who are interested. |
RE: chemical in plastic (polycarbonate) is dangerous
| | |
| This is a little off subject but....Poycarbonate panels and mosquito repellant (Deep Woods w DEET) do not mix. I have seen the results of mistakingly spraying repellant on the greenhouse covering. It destroys it withjin a day. It turns milky then cracks. |
RE: chemical in plastic (polycarbonate) is dangerous
| | |
| Yes, woodworm. You have to use DEET in Canada and Alaska when fishing, but if you do not rinse off your hands, you can melt your reel handles, especially with that bottled stuff that is 95% DEET. Tom |
RE: chemical in plastic (polycarbonate) is dangerous
| | |
| chinamigarden-Good one. H2O. |
RE: chemical in plastic (polycarbonate) is dangerous
| | |
| I haven't read all the posts in detail, but as a health care professional, I look at many of these new reports of "dangerous" chemicals and products with a mixture of concern and amusement. Certainly the public must keep the pressure on our industries and government to keep us safe from hazardous chemicals. Having said that, look at the big killers. Cardiovascular disease, lung cancer, accidents. The overwhelming majority of these problems are related to personal choices like smoking, obesity, stupidity. If you eat right, dont smoke and drink in moderation, you will live for ever (assuming you chose your parents properly and have good genes). When I see some folks over the age of 90, I think I'd rather be dead. |
RE: chemical in plastic (polycarbonate) is dangerous
| | |
- Posted by Patris 9 Gulf Coast (My Page) on
Sun, May 29, 05 at 12:27
| Wait till your 90 and then say that. Assuming your in good health. |
RE: chemical in plastic (polycarbonate) is dangerous
| | |
| I have several friends in their 90s living the good life. Of course they are neither obese nor smokers. Al |
RE: chemical in plastic (polycarbonate) is dangerous
| | |
| I never dreamed this thread would last so long! I posted it pretty much as a caveat for the most part. I was concerned that temperatures can get way over 125 degrees in the gh if I forget to open the vents. There have been a number of subsequent articles on this and all say that the high temperature part is much lower than melting temperature. There have been many times I have gone into a 100+ degree greenhouse and notices a strange smell that certainly did not seem organic. All in all, I was concerned that my consumable plants like veggie & catnip for the kitties might pick up some of the chemcials. Whatever - for those jeeze I find it amusing people, if you are older than 45, remember ddt and the malathion mosquito fog we used to play in when the mosquito truck came around. Anyway, the subject is starting to snowball. Too bad the UK takes notice and the USA doesn't. How ironic that all the info on this is coming out of the USA and our media is virtually ignoring it. X |
Here is a link that might be useful: Scientists link plastic food containers with breast cancer
|
|
|
|
