Do these common household items pose a health risk?

The ever changing face of medicine makes it feel like every day there is a new study telling us not to eat that, avoid this, or limit the consumption of something we love.

In a shocking twist then, a new study published in Hypertension this week has highlighted a potential negative consequence that can occur when consuming an excess of canned foods or drinks.

The research, conducted in the U.S, focused on the effects that Bisphenol A (BPA) has when added into the bloodstream. BPA is a common chemical found in products such as plastic bottles and the inner lining of food and drink cans. Prior research indicated an increase in blood pressure after study participants ate canned food for five consecutive days.

But does anyone realistically eat canned food five days a week every week? We doubt it, and clearly the researchers doubted that as well, which gave way to the new study.

The new trial tested subjects 60+ years of age, with one group drinking from glass containers and the other group drinking canned soft drink. Two hours later they measured urinary BPA concentration, blood pressure, and heart rate variability within each of the subjects.

The results found that the urinary BPA concentration increased by a shocking 1600 per cent after consuming canned beverages, compared with the consumption of glass bottled beverages. The results also showed that blood pressure increased by 4.5 mm Hg after consuming only two canned beverages compared with that after consuming two glass bottled beverages. These results are relatively alarming – how many of us drink more than two cans of soft drink a day?

Head of research Dr. Hong reinforces this thought when he stated “the present study demonstrated that consuming canned beverages and the consequent increase of BPA exposure increased blood pressure acutely”.

While the research is merely a preliminary study, it may be safe for those with pre existing heart conditions to think again when at the supermarket. Dr. Hong recommends avoiding exposure to BPA where possible. “I suggest consumers try to eat fresh foods or glass bottle-contained foods rather than canned foods and hopefully, manufacturers will develop and use healthy alternatives to BPA for the inner lining of can containers,” he concludes.

What do you think? Should we be worried about these results? Or is it too early to know for sure? Let us know in the comments.