The painful truth about plastic bottles
Looking at the plastic grade marker on bottles and other products can be helpful to your health.
YOU thought that reusing plastic bottles over and over again was useful, not to mention great for the environment. In fact, not knowing the type of plastic used could be quite harmful to the earth and your health. So many people tend to re-use plastic bottles after purchasing bottled water and don’t realise that toxins could be seeping into the water with every refill.
There are seven types of plastics grades: (PET) – Polyethylene Terephthalate, (PE-HD) – Polyethylene (high density), (PVC) – Polyvinylchloride, (PE-LD) – Polyethylene (low density), (PP) Polypropylene, (PS) Polystyrene, and (O) – Bisphenol-A and others. These plastics are used in everything as polyester fibres, toys, used in plastic surgery, water pipes, insulation, stationary, nappies and disk drives.
Additives and softeners used in some types of plastic have never been tested for safety, while other ingredients have been linked to reproductive problems, diabetes, cancers and other diseases. Certain plastics can gradually release chemicals over time that affect the body’s hormones (such as PET and Bisphenol-A). In the case of Bisphenol-A it in fact mimics the oestrogen when absorbed in the body. PET on the other hand releases endocrine-disrupting chemicals such acetaldehyde, as well as toxic antimony.
There is a sensible solution despite the fact that this information can be overwhelming since these plastics are used to make products that are a part of our every day lives. Be considerate of the recycling codes and the number of times it says it can be reused, when making purchases, so that you know when is the right time to drop off the plastic at a recycling facility.
