Oh, bisphenol A, what can’t you do? The ubiquitous chemical, present in polycarbonate plastic and most can linings, may reduce the effectiveness of chemotherapy, says new research published in Environmental Health Perspectives. Researchers subjected human breast cancer cells to low levels of BPA. “It’s actually acting by protecting existing cancer cells from dying in response to anti-cancer drugs,” says researcher Nira Ben-Jonathan. As the study authors note, “These data provide considerable support to the accumulating evidence that BPA is hazardous to human health.” Other studies have linked BPA to heart disease, diabetes, cancer, behavioral disorders, reproductive problems, and obesity. Lest we need to remind you, a 2003-4 study by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention found BPA detectable in the urine of 93 percent of the 2,500 participants.
