Health

In an effort to help students lead a healthier lifestyle, school chefs in Escondido have done away with pre-packaged, processed meals in favor of healthy, freshly cooked ones. The Escondido Union High School District (EUHSD) cooks about 10,000 meals a day for students, often in confined kitchens with limited prep space, but the results are worth it, according to those who benefit from the meals. Writes Viji Sundaram of AlterNet News:

The effects of plastic on the consumer are becoming more and more well known by the day, but the plastics industry impacts more than just the people who receive and use a finished product, as a new study highlights. Jim Morris of the Centre for Public Integrity writes that a six year study conducted by researchers from the US, Canada, and the UK have found that women who work in the plastic industry are almost five times as likely to develop breast cancer as those women in the control group.

Breast Cancer UK, a prominent charity devoted to raising money for Cancer research, has just asked the UK government to support a full ban on bisphenol A in light of rising health concerns emerging from research surrounding the chemical. According to Jonathan Sanders of Top News US, concerns over the carcinogenic properties of the chemical have spurred Breast Cancer UK's stance. Sanders writes:

In a study whose findings were made public on October 4th, it was found that the negative effects of endocrine disruptor bisphenol A actually begin as soon as BPA has broken down inside the body. Alan Mc Stravick of redOrbit News writes that researchers at the University of California, San Diego School of Medicine found that the chemical mimics another chemical found in the body, inhibiting estrogen transmission. He states:

CBS News contributor Michelle Castillo writes that a new study from UC Berkeley has emerged linking a mother's consumption of bisphenol A to her son's overactive thyroid problems. The study was conducted by Berkeley's Environmental Research and Children's Health Centre, and 

In an article issued by Dentistry Today, a dental firm called Ultradent Products, Inc. has come out in support of the United States Food and Drug Administration's ban on the controversial chemical bisphenol A. Unlike many dental sealants, which have been known to contain BPA, Ultradent's sealants have never contained the chemical, and the company has maintained an active stance against the inclusion of such a potentially harmful substance. According to the article:

In a report from ABC News today, Canada has announced that it supports the inclusion of bisphenol A in food packaging despite numerous health warnings generally associated with the chemical.

In an article posted yesterday on USA Today's website, a new study on bisphenol A has shown that the chemical has altered chromosomes in Rhesus monkeys, increasing the chances they experienced of miscarriages and birth defects in offspring. The study has had particular impact because, unlike many studies which use mice as test subjects, the Rhesus monkey is a much closer relative to humans. Contributor Liz Szabo writes that

In an article authored by Margaret Cuomo, M.D., a discussion is raised regarding the safety of the foods consumers are presented with, and the omnipresent chemical known as bisphenol A. The article begins by announcing the recent defeat of bisphenol A by the United States Food and Drug Administration, but asks the question: how much of a victory is this achievement?

Denmark has decided to outright ban four phthalates ahead of the European Union's next scheduled time to revisit the issue, which isn't until 2013. The EU already outlaws the use of several phthalates, and going against EU regulation, even to strength a current ban or piece of legislation, isn't permitted for member countries.