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The American Plastics Council Plastics are our Passion Our Vision… • To prove the safety of plastic • To improve quality of life • To promote the benefits of plastics and the plastics industry • To diminish the perceived safety crisis surrounding Lexan plastic History of Plastics •Alexander Parkes invents first man-made plastic (1862) •Plastic industry is popularized in the 1950s •Since the 1970s plastic has become the most used material in the world http://www.americanplasticscouncil.org/s_apc/index.asp Distribution of Plastics in the U.S. Packaging 5% 4% 4% 6% 29% Building and Construction Consumer and institutional Export 12% 21% 19% Transportatio n Furnishing All others Electronics http://www.americanplasticscouncil.org/s_apc/index.asp Uses of Plastic • • • • • • • Shopping/Garbage bags Medical Equipment Plumbing pipes Bionic body parts Cell phones Computer parts Automotive material http://www.americanplasticscouncil.org/s_apc/index.asp Types of Plastic • There are several different types of plastic used in the plastic industry, including: • • • • • • • • Resin containing plastics Polycarbonate Vinyl Acrylics Thermoset polyester Phenolic Polyurethane Polystyrene http://www.americanplasticscouncil.org/s_apc/index.asp Plastics Saves Lives • • Plastic is used in a variety of functions that sustain our daily lives. Without plastic, products used in child safety, baby care, and healthy lifestyles may not exist Plastic is used in: • • • • Bicycle helmets to protective sports gear reducing the risk of accidental injury. Home childproof products to child safety seats Food containers Smoke alarms Plastics are used in medical supplies to provide sterile and healthy ways to store products and instruments. http://www.americanplasticscouncil.org/s_apc/index.asp Improving Quality of Life • Plastics are used in the kitchen for clean food storage, in automobiles for convenience and safety, and are environmentally safe products made possible by recycling. http://www.americanplasticscouncil.org/s_apc/index.asp Lexan Plastic • There are many concerns of bisphenol-A and dioxin being leached from plastics and into the food/beverages they contain • The safety of Lexan plastic has been controversial, however many studies and research indicate that Lexan plastic is safe • According to George Pauli, associate director for science and policy at the office of food additive safety at the Food and Drug Administration, “there is ‘no dioxin in plastic, that's absolutely crazy.” http://www.plasticsinfo.org/s_plasticsinfo/sec_level4_alt.asp?CID=551&DID=3406 Bisphenol-A • Bisphenol-A (BPA) is one of the primary chemicals used to make polycarbonate plastic, epoxy resins and other products • BPA is used in a variety of plastics that affect your everyday life. For example: Eye glass lenses, DVDs, and reusable food and drink containers • The safety of Bisphenol-A is supported by the Environmental Protection Agency through a variety of tests http://www.bisphenol-a.org/human/polyplastics.html Safety in Bisphenol-A • Current government agencies such as the Food and Drug Administration and Environmental Protection Agency have studied the potential for low levels of BPA leaking from polycarbonate products into the foods and beverages they hold. Research consistently shows: • • • Potential migration of BPA into food/beverages is “generally less than 5 parts per billion” The estimated dietary intake of BPA from these plastics is less than 0.0000125 milligrams per kilogram body weight per day This means that average person would have to consume more than 1,300 pounds of food/beverages in contact with the plastic every day for a lifetime to have ingested levels of BPA considered unsafe by the EPA http://www.bisphenol-a.org/human/polyplastics.html Safety in Bisphenol-A continued • The SCF, European Commission's Scientific Committee on Food, has also recently determined that safe levels of BPA from food contact sources range from 0.00048 to 0.0016 milligrams per kilogram body weight per day which is far below the Tolerable Daily Intake of 0.01 milligrams per kilogram body weight per day. • A multitude of government agencies have confirmed the safety of polycarbonate plastics including: • Food and Drug Administration, • The European Commission Scientific Committee on Food, • The United Kingdom Food Standards Agency, • The Japan Ministry for Health and Welfare and other regulatory authorities worldwide. http://www.bisphenol-a.org/human/polyplastics.html Safety in Bisphenol-A continued • • • • To ensure the safety of polycarbonate plastic, extensive studies have been done on a variety of products, particularly baby bottles “In most cases, new baby bottles were studied under wellcharacterized laboratory conditions. In each case, migration of BPA from new baby bottles, when detected was less than 5 parts per billion.” Time and temperature conditions were set place during the tests • ex. 4 baby bottles- 30 minutes at 95ºC followed by 24 hours at room temperature. Results show that three of the four bottles had migration levels of BPA less than 1 part per billion • the exception was an unwashed baby bottle with migration levels of 3.9 parts per billion Studies have proven that one has a better chance of winning the lottery then being effected by Bisphenol-A in food. http://www.bisphenol-a.org/human/polyplastics.html Disputes Against BPA • Dr. Patricia Hunt of Case Western University in Ohio finds chromosomal abnormalities in mice once exposed to certain levels of BPA • Though her studies show effects of BPA in mice, research still have not proven that BPA affects humans (Levy, 2006) Problems With Hunt’s Research • Does not follow international guidelines to test for health effects • The results have not been reproduced in another lab showing that Hunt’s results are not definitive • Industry scientists even question if the results of the mouse studies are relevant (Levy, 2006) The APC’s Stance • We believe that plastics are our future and we would never want to do anything to hurt future generations • There are no definitive studies showing that Bisphenol-A has adverse affects on humans • Until studies prove that BPA is harmful to humans, we will not be pulling products off the shelves • Plastics are our passion and we want to keep sharing the benefits plastic has to offer Reference Page • AmericanPlasticsCouncil.org. (2006). American Plastic Council. Retrieved October 18, 2006. http://www.americanplasticscouncil.org/s_apc/index.asp. • Foreman, J. (2005). Heat's on plastic containers. Los Angelos Times. Retrieved October 20, 2006. http://www.plasticsinfo.org/s_plasticsinfo/sec_level4_alt.asp?CID=551&DID=3 06. • BisphenolA. (2006). About Bisphenol-A. Retrieved October 18, 2006. http://www.bisphenol-a.org/.