BPA: a real-life case study
Something interesting just happened with our dog Celeste. She has been with us since the age of 9 weeks so we know her health and personal habits quite well as a puppy. You have always eaten very healthy homemade food in stainless steel or ceramic bowls. But about 6 months ago, we started serving her food from the plastic container that it was stored in from the refrigerator.
Soon after, he developed a small growth on his lip. The vet said that Celeste likely bit herself and that the small fibroid could be surgically removed or left there. The idea of putting Celeste under anesthesia to remove a small benign growth was quickly scrapped. Maybe it will go away on its own (Ha! That almost never happens).
Then about 3 weeks ago, part of his nose started to change color from black to pinkish-white. It was on the same side of his face as the fibroid. There was nothing in my mind that even put these same two facial anomalies in the same category. But as most of us know, there are no coincidences. More detective work began.
This time I went online to see if I could find the answers myself. (Those who know me know that I don’t give up easily when it comes to health challenges.) The Internet has a large number of solutions for every problem. We just have to use discernment and some common sense when filtering through these websites.
Not wanting to believe in sadness and doom that my dog is old (only 3 years old) or has a strange skin condition or blaming the weather (hard to believe, but the seasonal change will cause this color change of the nose), I looked into it more. I think it was somewhere around page 5 of the Google search that other causal factors came up.
Possibly I found something about the chemicals in the plastic dishes that create the color change. I thought this would be a simple thing to correct. We immediately changed all of their serving bowls to stainless steel or ceramic. Guess what? Within three days, not only was her nose returning to its normal color, but the growth on her lip was also disappearing. A week later, there was no trace of any disease on her nose or lip. My beautiful healthy puppy had her baby’s face turned back.
Thank you Celeste for that personal live lesson on the dangers of plastics in our environment!
The thing to keep in mind is that Celeste is a 12 pound dog. The effects on her were seen visually. If you are a 100 or 200 pound person, the effects will not be so obvious. And Celeste is EXTREMELY healthy, so her immune system was able to keep these toxins on the surface of her skin without being deeply absorbed by her internal organs. That is probably the real reason why everything was resolved so quickly.
Which brings me to the dangers of BPA.
Bisphenol-A (BPA) has become an epidemic in our plastic-dependent society. Not only does it affect our current population, but there is also evidence that it is also transmitted to newborns in the womb. It is an endocrine disruptor; a synthetic estrogen mimic (xenoestrogen). Hormonal disruption or imbalance leads to infertility, puberty, sexual and gender identity issues, diabetes, obesity, and possibly even estrogen-related cancers.
It is used in most plastic bottles, the inner liners of food and beverage cans, inks for store receipts, printers and paper money, and some cosmetics and clothing. Even the CDC reported in 2004 that BPA has appeared in the urine of more than 90% of the people tested.
So why is this important in dentistry?
Because many of the composites and most of the sealants used in dentistry contain bisphenol-A. Yes, you read it right. You pulled out your toxic silver mercury fillings and may have replaced them with toxic white ones. It is not what I would call progress.
So you, as an informed consumer, need to stop trusting your healthcare professional so much (see my personal experience on Choosing a Holistic Dentist), educate yourself a little more, and make better decisions. It sure worked for Celeste.
And by the way, the sealants and white fillers we use in our office are BPA free.
Don’t worry here.