Before read more about the article, do you know what is BPA ?I think most of us don’t really know about BPA otherwise you are a doctor or any medical or chemical student. BPA is acronym of Bisphenol A (BPA), a chemical commonly found in plastic and cans.
According to the study published in journal PLOS ONE, the chemical compound also contributing to the obesity epidemic. Dr. De-Kun Li, from Kaiser Permanente in Oakland, California studied 1,326 school age children in Shanghai, China and measured BPA levels in their urine. The girls ages 9-12 have higher BPA urine levels that were associated with a doubled risk of obesity. As their BPA urine levels increased so did the girls obesity risk. It is measured using their weight in reference to weight distribution in the population.
But the research only showed that neither girls outside 9-12 age range nor boys experienced a risk of being overweight or obese even with high levels of BPA in their urine.
Li said ‘“Girls seem to be more sensitive to environmental impact, and we don’t know exactly why,’. Researchers found that BPA is an endocrine disrupting chemical and it will enters the body and mimics estrogen, the main hormone in female development. When BPA acts like estrogen in young girls, it may accelerate the onset of puberty and cause weight gain. Another study conducted last year in the US also showed a similar association between obesity and BPA. We can avoid BPA in our lives. It contain inside of food cans and some plastic containers and enter our body through ingestion.
According to the CDC, nearly everyone in US over age 6 has BPA traceable in their urine. Other than obesity, BPA also related to other health problems such as low birth weight, asthama and sexual dysfunction in men.
Last year, The Food and Drug Administration has banned BPA in the plastic used to make baby bottles and sippy cups.
Li hopes this result brings attention the the potential health effects of BPA and that it spurs action from the FDA. the evidence is still building but the study should show that BPA could become a major health concern for child obesity.
– CNN
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