Health Column | Annapolis March 2009
By Jackie Janosik Buan
Plastic containers sure make life easier but maybe not healthier. Many of those convenient plastic water bottles and plastic-lined baby formula cans are made with one of the most controversial chemicals in use today—bisphenol A (BPA).
Scores of government-funded studies have linked BPA exposure to increased risks of diabetes, heart disease, cancer, reproductive and hormonal problems, and hyperactivity. Advocates of a ban on BPA in food containers note that traces of the chemical were found in 93 percent of the participants in a U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention survey—with children ages six to 11 having higher levels than adults. While the U.S. Food and Drug Administration moves forward with additional research, concerned consumers are left with the challenging job of figuring out how to get through a day with as little exposure to BPA as possible. It is everywhere: in hard polycarbonate food and drink packaging, compact discs, dinnerware, sports safety equipment, and certain medical devices and dental sealants. It is even in the lining of metal food cans, bottle tops, and water supply lines.
The National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences offers these steps for reducing BPA exposure:
• Don’t microwave polycarbonate plastic containers or wash them in the dishwasher with harsh detergents. BPA is strong and durable, but over time it may break down from overuse at high temperatures.
• Avoid plastic containers with the number 7 (usually inside or beneath the triangular recycling symbol) on the bottom.
• Use less canned foods (especially those in cans with epoxy linings). Eat fresh or frozen foods.
• When possible, opt for glass, porcelain, or stainless steel containers, particularly for hot food or liquids.
• Consider alternative plastic products, such as those labeled “PETE” or with the recycling code number 1.
• Use BPA-free toys and baby bottles. (Some healthcare providers also recommend using powdered infant formula instead of ready-made liquid formula sold in metal cans.)
Confused by the recycling codes for the different types of plastics? Check out this website sponsored by the Sonoma County (California) Waste Management Agency
www.recyclenow.org/r_plastics.html.
Vitamin D to the Rescue
The “sunshine” vitamin made the headlines again. An abundance of evidence associates vitamin D deficiency with various medical conditions, including heart disease, certain cancers, Parkinson’s disease, and osteoporosis. Recent studies now emphasize the importance of maintaining a vitamin D level sufficient to ward off autoimmune disease, including multiple sclerosis (MS), which is typically diagnosed in early-to-middle adulthood and more often in women than in men.
A Journal of Cellular Biochemistry article notes the incidence of MS decreases as the amount of vitamin D available to the body increases through either diet or exposure to sunlight. An earlier study by Harvard researchers found a 40 percent lower risk of MS in women who supplemented their diet each day with at least 400 international units (IUs) of vitamin D than in those who did not.
With autoimmune disease on the rise it is exciting news that taking an over-the-counter vitamin supplement daily (in the form of drops, capsules, or tablets) could offer protection against the risks of developing specific diseases. The website of the National Institutes of Health (NIH) Office of Dietary Supplements says, “Vitamin D is naturally present in very few foods, added to others and available as a dietary supplement.” The nutrient—technically not a vitamin but a steroid hormone—is also activated when skin is exposed to the sun’s ultraviolet rays. As little as 10 minutes of exposure daily may be enough to prevent vitamin D deficiency. The dose currently recommended by the Institute of Medicine is 200 IUs of vitamin D a day from birth to age 50 and 400 to 600 IUs for adults older than 50. However, the American Academy of Pediatrics recently doubled its recommendation, from 200 to 400 IUs, for the minimum amount that infants, children, and teens should get daily.
Spring is in the air…get a little sunshine and a free dose of vitamin D.
Food Sources of Vitamin D
Food IUs per serving*
Cod liver oil, 1 tablespoon 1,360
Salmon, cooked, 3.5 ounces 360
Tuna, canned in oil, 3 ounces 200
Sardines, canned in oil, drained, 1.75 ounces 250
Milk, nonfat, reduced fat, and whole, vitamin D-fortified, 1 cup 98
Egg, 1 whole (vitamin D is found in yolk) 20
Source: Office of Dietary Supplements, National Institutes of Health, “Dietary Supplement Fact Sheet: Vitamin D.” *IUs = International units.
Hospitals Care for the Body, Mind, and Spirit
Surgery patients in some hospitals may now find guided imagery visualization techniques and Reiki laying-on-hands therapies offered as standard treatments. Hospitals are responding to patient demand and integrating complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) services with the conventional care they usually provide. According to a 2008 American Hospital Association (AHA) survey, more than 37 percent of responding hospitals indicated they offer one or more CAM therapies, up from 26.5 percent in 2005.
Leading the nation in offering CAM services are mostly urban hospitals in the southern Atlantic states, followed by the east north central states (Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Ohio, and Wisconsin) and those in the middle Atlantic. Specialists at the Johns Hopkins Integrative Medicine and Digestive Center, which opened in September, include acupuncturists, nutritionists, massage therapists, and a psychotherapist who uses hypnosis and touch therapy. And the University of Maryland School of Medicine’s Center for Integrative Medicine developed a new program to teach its healthcare professionals guided imagery, journaling, yoga, Reiki, sound healing, and other methods to reduce stress and pain.
Today’s patients have better access to health information and are demanding more personalized care,” says AHA study author Sita Ananth. “The survey results reinforce the fact that patients want the best that both traditional and alternative medicine can offer.”
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