canned food, is it good for you?

Discussion in 'Back to Basics' started by beast, Nov 24, 2011.


  1. beast

    beast backwoodsman

    Soaring BPA Levels Found in People Who Eat Canned Foods

    livesci_logo_73. <cite id="yui_3_3_0_23_1322146560886411" class="byline vcard">By Karen Rowan | LiveScience.com – <abbr id="yui_3_3_0_23_1322146560886410" title="2011-11-23T15:30:48+00:00">23 hrs ago</abbr></cite>






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    Eating canned food every day may raise the levels of the compound bisphenol A (BPA) in a person's urine more than previously suspected, a new study suggests.
    People who ate a serving of canned soup every day for five days had BPA levels of 20.8 micrograms per liter of urine, whereas people who instead ate fresh soup had levels of 1.1 micrograms per liter, according to the study. BPA is found in many canned foods — it is a byproduct of the chemicals used to prevent corrosion.
    When the researchers looked at the rise in BPA levels seen in the average participant who ate canned soup compared with those who ate fresh soup, they found a 1,221 percent jump.
    "To see an increase in this magnitude was quite surprising," said study leader Karin Michels, an associate professor of epidemiology at the Harvard School of Public Health.
    The levels of BPA seen in the study participants "are among the most extreme reported in a nonoccupational setting," the researchers wrote in their study. In the general population, levels have been found to be around 1 to 2 micrograms per liter, Michels said.



    The study noted that levels higher than 13 micrograms per liter were found in only the top 5 percent of participants in the National Health and Examination Survey, which is an ongoing study conducted by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
    "We are concerned about the influence of [hormone-disrupting] chemicals on health in general, and BPA is one of them," Michels told MyHealthNewsDaily.
    The study is published online today (Nov. 22) in the Journal of the American Medical Association.
    Soup for lunch
    The study included 75 people, whose average age was 27. One group of participants ate 12 ounces of fresh soup every day at lunchtime, while the other ate the same amount of canned soup each day. Urine samples were collected from the participants on the fourth and fifth days of the study.
    BPA was detected in 77 percent of people who ate the fresh soup, and all of the people who ate the canned soup, according to the study.
    Only a few studies had previously looked at BPA levels from eating canned foods, and those relied on asking people how much of the food they usually eat comes from cans, Michels said. The new study was the first in which researchers randomized participants to eat a small serving of canned food or fresh food, and measured the resulting difference in their urine BPA levels, she said.
    "We've known for a while that drinking beverages that have been stored in certain hard plastics can increase the amount of BPA in your body. This study suggests that canned foods may be an even greater concern, especially given their wide use," said study researcher Jenny Carwile, a doctoral student at Harvard.
    BPA and health
    A 2008 study of 1,455 people showed that higher urinary BPA levels were linked with higher risks of developing cardiovascular disease and diabetes, and abnormal concentrations of certain liver enzymes, even after factors such as age, body mass index and smoking were taken into account.
    And other studies have linked BPA levels in a woman's urine during her pregnancy to health problems in her child.
    It is not known how long the levels of BPA might remain high, according to the study. However, it is also not known whether such a spike, even if it isn't sustained for very long, may affect health, the researchers wrote.
    The study was limited in that all of the participants were students or staff at one school, and a single soup brand (Progresso) was tested, but the researchers wrote that they expected the results to apply to canned foods with a similar BPA content.
    "Reducing canned food consumption may be a good idea, especially for people consuming foods from cans regularly," Michels said. "Maybe manufacturers can take the step of taking BPA out of the lining of cans — some have already done this, but only a few."
    The study was funded by the Allen Foundation, which advocates nutrition research.
    Pass it on: Cutting down on the amount of canned food you eat might be a good idea, researchers say.
    This story was provided by MyHealthNewsDaily, a sister site to LiveScience. Follow MyHealthNewsDaily on Twitter @MyHealth_MHND. Find us on Facebook.
     
  2. dragonfly

    dragonfly Monkey+++

    Now that's "Heartwarming"! I used to love to have a can of soup most days, especially on cold ones! Maybe even 2 or sometimes3...OMG! I am a walking time bomb of BPA's! Guess I'l go back to making my own soups,well.... that is IF I can find ANY ingredients that aren't contaminated with E-coli or samonella!
    Sheesh! What's a person to do anymore? Everyday it's something else, water, coffee, salads, eggs, peanut butter,... is ANYTHING safe to eat today?
    I'm thinking sawdust ( from Alaskan pines only!) I hear they are the virgin's today!
     
  3. Espada

    Espada Monkey+

    Incredibly, I'm still here, after 13 solid months of eating canned food in 1968 - 69 ! And I can still urinate okay, too !
     
    jack_froste and dragonfly like this.
  4. dragonfly

    dragonfly Monkey+++

    Personally I think a LOT of the BPA's came from certain types of plastics used...at least at one time...Today, it's a toss up! Who knows what's being used for can liners?
     
  5. weegrannymush

    weegrannymush Monkey+

    W-e-l-l! That certainly puts a bit of a wrench in the works for we Preppers. Bad news, no matter how you look at it. I went to my storage area, surveyed all my lovely ranks of CANNED goods and gave a big sigh. Talk about being damned if you do, and damned if you don't.....

    On top of that, I have just been diagnosed with Stage 3B kidney failure which means I am extremely restricted now in what I can eat and there I am with all my emergency cans of salmon and tuna, not to mention the soups, beans etc., all of which contain massive quantities of sodium, which I am now not allowed to have except in small amounts. I can rinse the beans but how do you rinse the soup, lol! I am beginning to feel I should just give up on Prepping because it seems I lose ground after every advance I make! No one else in the family likes salmon and tuna (these were my own personal supplies) so I guess the food bank is going to get a large donation. And what am I supposed to put in their place? Feeling very frustrated right now!
     
  6. dragonfly

    dragonfly Monkey+++

    Never give up, never surrender!
    Now on the serious side of things...Let's see here...dependson where you are and where OTHER MONKEY's are, perhaps ( I'm tossing it out here now!) just perhaps, some of US out there could help you by "trade/barter" means to help you re-vamp as it were your stores, with something more appropriate for your medical condition? Someone has to live close by enough to help out witht this situation...? By either trading "can for can"? or buying what she has,which she can no longer use? Maybe a trade scenario? C'mon youse monkeys! Lets do this! That's what it's really all about right? Helping each other?, Well....now is the time! There must be someone out there that has low sodium or even a dietary type of stores....If I could afford it, I'd make adeal to ship the goods and pay the freight as well as the cost per item...! WE can do this!
     
  7. dragonfly

    dragonfly Monkey+++

    Weegrannymush NEEDS OUR help!

     
  8. ghrit

    ghrit Bad company Administrator Founding Member

    granny, we know what you can't use, how about an idea of what you'll trade for?
     
  9. Falcon15

    Falcon15 Falco Peregrinus

    OK, lets start from the top. You have been eating BPA "tainted" foods since you were young. Any time a food has been gotten out of a can, it has BPA for at least the last 50 years, if some data I can gather is correct, since the 1930's. So, you are already loaded with the stuff.

    It is truly NOT damned if you do. You WILL be damned if you do not eat.

    Let us address the sodium levels of canned goods: Ready to eat soups, dilute 50/50 with water or milk - depending on the type of soup. This reduces the sodium levels by 50% and stretches your food by 50%. Condensed soups, add 50% more water (instead of 1 can, add 2). Same premise. Canned beans just rinse thoroughly before adding to a meal (unseasoned canned beans like kidney etc.). Seasoned beans like Baked, Pork-n-beans etc, you can eat 1/2 portions with other foods, as long as you keep your sodium intake moderate. Just modify your lifestyle, no need to get radical change going. You are NOT dead, just ill.

    Any canned meats (tin canned meats) the sodium levels are dispersed into the food you make with them. So if you have 1 cup of meat and you make 3 cups of say, tuna salad, as long as you use low or no sodium additional ingredients (say subbing lemon juice and low sodium sour cream for mayo, fresh celery and onion, no relish) you have effectively reduced your salt by 1/3.

    You can also use the condensed or ready to eat soups for cooking casserole type one pot meals, and as long as you do not add salt, you are again, dispersing the sodium.

    Now to address your stage 3B kidney failure. If it is an issue with renal artery blockage, there are vascular surgeons I have worked with that can and will stent renal arteries to improve their function. This is an outpatient procedure and usually takes just a couple of hours. However, it requires a diagnostic trip to a cath lab and a die injection under a C-Arm to assess the renal flow and function. If the arteries are under moderate stenosis (blockage or narrowing due to blockage), a stent will restore full flow of blood to the kidney/kidneys.

    Do NOT donate your food stores to the food bank. THERE ARE WAYS to address the sodium levels, and still enjoy the food you have put back.

    Being in Stage3 is not an irreversible thing. 5 is total failure, 1 is mild. You are smack in the middle. Treat now, aggressively and you could reverse or reduce your stage. KIDNEY DISEASE NEED NOT BE FATAL.
     
  10. weegrannymush

    weegrannymush Monkey+

    Dragonfly, ghrit, and Falcon: what can I say except a major big "thank you" for your kindness and CARING! How thoughtful of all of you to take the time in your busy lives to try to help me. You have all given me food (no pun intended, lol) for thought and I think I will hang on to my high sodium supplies until I see the renal dietitian (which, because I live in the middle of nowhere and there is no local dietitian), will not be for about three months. I have ordered several books on kidney diets etc., so maybe there will be some help in them. You really do have to be your own doctor up here, I have already found that out...the docs simply do not have time to go into everything in detail. At Stage 3 I have to have low sodium, low phosphorus and low protein but am still allowed potassium, but that also will be curtailed if I progress to Stage 4 (God forbid, sez I). All of this is complicated by the fact that I have A-fib and am on the new drug Pradax (Canada) - I believe it's called Pradaxa in the U.S. - as a blood thinner instead of Warfarin so there are problems in other ways. Oh the joys of getting old, the guy who said "Grow old along with me, the best is yet to be" had to be 35, I suspect, lol.

    Anyway, enough of that.....you have given me so much encouragement...I was sort of thinking well, I'm not going to live long enough to need my preps but maybe I'll lick this thing or at least delay it for a while. All of your ideas and tips will be put to good use....I have already started rinsing the canned beans.

    Dragonfly, I was so moved that you would be prepared to go to all this trouble for me. And to any others who might have been going to write in, thank you also. Falcon, I am going to study your post carefully, you told me more in your post than the doc bothered to tell me.

    I would certainly like to know if anybody else is in this situation and what you are able to store longterm??? Unfortunately for we Canadians, we do not have the same vast array of types of foods as you folks do in the States, saltfree alternatives, e.g. Would appreciate any and all input/ideas. I am not prepared to give up the ghost yet! If I have my druthers, that is.....

    Well, it's the Great Canadian Novel, once again, sorry about that (again!)

    Hope all the U.S. Monkeys are having a great Thanksgiving!
     
  11. Seawolf1090

    Seawolf1090 Retired Curmudgeonly IT Monkey Founding Member

    We seem to be seeing a LOT more folks diagnosed with all kinds of ailments these days requiring dietary restrictions. A good friend at work has the Gluten allergy - cannot eat anything with wheat, barley or some soy products. No beer....! His good wife (herself battling cancer the second time!) has gotten very good at cooking Gluten-free - makes bread with rice, potato and garbanzo flours. It really restricts his being able to eat out.
    Luckily corn is okay - so he tends to eat more 'Mexican-style' meals - but has to make sure the cornmeal was produced on machinery NOT used for wheat!
    Soy is apparently causing big trouble for many people, and it's in nearly EVERYTHING! Look at the contents - 'soy lecithin' permeates our foods.
    MSG is a POISON! Another buddy gets severe headaches if he eats MSG - has to be very careful in Chinese restaurants! The stuff is in a LOT of our foods too.
    I try to avoid Canola Oil - another 'food' product being indicated as causing major problems.
    Now we have the frankenfoods - GMO - reaing it's ugly head.
    Canned foods are the least of our problems.
     
    weegrannymush and dragonfly like this.
  12. BTPost

    BTPost Stumpy Old Fart,Deadman Walking, Snow Monkey Moderator

    I didn't know about Wheat or Rye Bread until I left for college. My mother made her own bread, and it was ALWAYS Potato Bread, as most her family had Gluten Free Issues, and she liked to bake.
     
    dragonfly likes this.
  13. dragonfly

    dragonfly Monkey+++

  14. ghrit

    ghrit Bad company Administrator Founding Member

    Heh. Those links have a trailing sales pitch. I have no doubt that there is a potential problem with BPa. I also suspect an overstatement of the case as part of an opportunity to sell.

    (y)
     
    mysterymet and Sapper John like this.
  15. Clyde

    Clyde Jet Set Tourer Administrator Founding Member

    I would rather eat BPAs than starve. Starving guarantees death!
     
  16. Seawolf1090

    Seawolf1090 Retired Curmudgeonly IT Monkey Founding Member

    As with most things in life, there's simply too much info, and too many things to guard against. We have to 'prioritise' things, and I have too many higher priority things to watch than a bit of BPA. We can only do so much.
     
  17. dragonfly

    dragonfly Monkey+++

    Now, would"they"lie to us? Nah,never! Unless they wanted to sell something!
    I missed that part!
     
  18. BTPost

    BTPost Stumpy Old Fart,Deadman Walking, Snow Monkey Moderator

    I put the BPA Scare in the same category as the Alar Scare that hit the Apple Industry a couple of Decades ago. Some Two Bit Group decided that this stuff would kill your Kids, and the growers used it to spray on Apples. No one checked the credentials of the Outfit, but just RAN the Story, and it went nationwide. Turns out that a person would have to EAT 20 Lbs of the stuff, every Day, for 20 years to get any effect at all. Big lot of Hype and BS. Do your OWN research, into all these supposed claims, "That your Food will Kill You", and more than likely you will find out that a competing product was behind the whole deal, OR some Greenie Outfit, with an Agenda, but NO Scientific BackGround, or creditability, was just trying to make a lot of NOISE.
     
  19. DKR

    DKR Raconteur of the first stripe

    BPA = todays Alar scare

    BPA is a component of the stuff used to line cans used in the food industry. AS stated before, been in use for decades world-wide.

    BPA is also used in the production of epoxy resins. Epoxy resins have many uses including engineering applications such as electrical laminates for printed circuit boards, composites, paints and adhesives, as well as in a variety of protective coatings. Cured epoxy resins are inert materials used as protective liners in metal cans to maintain the quality of canned foods and beverages, and have achieved wide acceptance for use as protective coatings because of their exceptional combination of toughness, adhesion, formability, and chemical resistance.

    MY father has been eating canned and processed foods all of his 87 year life - and is still licking.

    BPA when measured in Parts Per Trillion (ya, trillion, like dollars) looks bad. But consider this:
    Government and industry researchers have reported that bisphenol A (BPA) is generally not detected in canned beverages and only extremely low levels (generally less than 37 parts per billion) of BPA have been reported to migrate into some canned foods. At these levels, a consumer would have to ingest more than 500 pounds of canned food and beverages every day for an entire lifetime to exceed the safe level of BPA set by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. Consequently, human exposure to BPA from can coatings is minimal and poses no known health risk.


    The American Chemistry Council disputed the findings, saying publishing the results amounts to a "serious disservice by drawing a conclusion about product safety that simply cannot be drawn from either this study or the overall body of scientific research."

    Food company officials say the doses detected in the tests are so low that they are insignificant to human health.

    "These levels are EXTREMELY low," wrote John Faulkner, director of brand communications for Campbell Soup Co. Tests of the company's Just Heat & Enjoy tomato soup showed its container leached some of the lowest levels of BPA found. "In fact, you might just be able to find similar levels in plain old tap water due to 'background' levels. We are talking 40 to 60 parts per trillion (ppt). What is 40 to 60 ppt? 40 to 60 seconds in 32,000 years!"

    The media is always looking for a boogyman - in the past, Alar, today, BPA.
    What's next? Something invisible in the air that's going to cause the earth to overheat and kill everyone?
    (Oh, wait)
     
  20. beast

    beast backwoodsman

    tobacco and DDT and agent orange were once considered safe and the USDA told us so
    same for CCA treated wood products and now we have GM foods and obama, the usda, the ag council and even the supreme court says they are safe

    WAKE THE F*CK UP!
    if they can make money off it, and it helps them cut down on the population, they are gonna say its safe
     
    BackwoodsmanUSA likes this.
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