BPA, or Bisphenol A, is a chemical used to make hard plastic food and drink containers. Water bottles, food storage containers, baby bottles, receipts, and reusable cups all contain BPA.

For years, the Department of Health and Human Services has been looking into possible health implications of BPA exposure. Problems such as breast cancer, prostate cancer, obesity, attention deficit disorder, hyperactivity disorder, brain damage, altered immune systems, lower sperm counts, and early onset puberty have been linked with vast amounts of BPA.

Because of these possible health implications, companies have tried to severely limit the amount of BPA used in their products. Take water bottles for instance. Remember when we were younger how hard and tough the plastic was? Now think about it, you can crush a water bottle with fairly minimal effort, because they are so much thinner. According to One Earth.com, this is because companies have tried to make their bottles more eco-friendly. In addition to being eco-friendly, there is less BPA, making it more consumer-friendly.

Recently, they have discovered that higher levels of BPA can cause behavioral problems in girls. According to ABC news, women who are exposed to large amounts of BPA during pregnancy have an increased likelihood that their daughter will have behavioral problems. Family Practice News says that there are no implications in males because the BPA increases maternal testosterone (check out NovaGenix for more information). Since males already have so much testosterone, they are not as affected.

The increased behavioral problems, such as depression, hyperactivity, anxiousness, emotional control, and social adjustment arise when a female is exposed to large amounts of BPA while in the womb. This research of BPA effects on female fetuses is still only in its early stages. More research has to be done, including tracking pregnant women’s exposure to BPA during pregnancy, and then the children themselves must be monitored for the first few years of their lives. Due to the amount of time a pregnancy takes and having to monitor the children for the first few years of their lives, it will be quite a while before researchers can make a definitive conclusion about the effects of BPA during pregnancy.