• Overview
• Food
• Baby Care
• Hazards & Threats
• News
• Our Purpose
• Prevention
• Products
• Sustainability & Lifestyle
• All Articles
• All Videos

Blog

The Environmental Working Group just released a study, which found Bisphenol A (BPA) on forty percent of receipts sampled. The sampling includes large U.S. businesses, and some of the BPA-receipt offenders include: McDonald’s, CVS, KFC, Wal-Mart, Safeway, the U.S. Postal Service and (ekk!) Whole Foods. Receipts from businesses that tested BPA-free or trace amounts include: Target, Starbucks, and Bank of America ATM’s.

The EWG explains:

Two-fifths of the paper receipts tested by a major laboratory commissioned by Environmental Working Group were on heat-activated paper that was between 0.8 to nearly 3 percent pure BPA by weight. Wipe tests conducted with a damp laboratory paper easily picked up a portion of the receipts' BPA coating, indicating that the chemical would likely stick to the skin of anyone who handled them. The receipts came from major retailers, grocery stores, convenience stores, gas stations, fast-food restaurants, post offices and automatic teller machines (ATMs).

Possibilities which still need to be explored further, on how much of a BPA-laden receipt can be transferred into the body include:

• Oral exposure -- BPA moves from receipts onto fingers and then onto food and into the mouth.
• Dermal exposure -- BPA from receipts is directly absorbed through the skin into the body.

Retail workers should be especially concerned, due to their daily handling and exposure to receipts. According to one study, retail workers carry 30% more BPA in their bodies than other adults. Also considering 1 in 17 Americans are employed in retail jobs, millions of adults are being exposed daily to BPA.

However, this shocking news should not take precedent over the focus on banning BPA in food storage, and the EWG takes a firm stance in their determination to keep policymakers on track: “BPA exposure from food sources is ubiquitous and should remain the first priority of U.S. policymakers.”

It also should be noted that many companies do not use the BPA receipt paper, and alternatives for businesses are clearly available. Hopefully with a few phone calls and some pressure, many companies will be quick to amend their harmful receipts.
In the meantime, be sure to check out the Safe Chemicals Act which would regulate this use of BPA, but needs a helping hand from YOU!

Other simple steps for prevention include:

• Declining a receipt (unless you need it for tax records – in which case, quickly put it in an envelope)
• Washing your hands after handling a receipt
• Not letting children handle receipts

Find Out More:

• How to Avoid the Sneakiest Sources of BPA
• Unpleasant Soucres of BPA: Paper Products
• Some Bisphenol A with Your Green Beans?

Print this page | Email a friend