Plastic phobia is sweeping the nation after SBS broadcast a two-part special on environmental hormones on Sept. 10 and 17. The show says environmental hormones in plastic products can cause menstrual cramps, genital abnormalities and precocious puberty. Heating nursing bottles made of polycarbonate generates an environmental hormone called Bisphenol A. Polycarbonate is used for a wide range of products including bottles, sunglasses, blow dryers and electronic fans because it is both transparent and thermostable. Bisphenol A is also used to coat the inner part of cans and water pipes and to produce bottle caps. Environmental hormones are also detected in detergents, perfumes and cosmetic products.
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A video grab from the SBS Special ¡®Environmental Hormones Attack -- Our Children Are at Risk.¡¯
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Already sales of plastic products are affected, and glass is booming. Shinsegae E-mart says sales of glass containers, which stood at W50-60 million (US$1=W952) per week, jumped 146 percent to W150 million for a week after the first part of the program aired. Sales of glass water bottles, including baby bottles, increased by 70 percent to W170 million after the program was broadcast from the week before (Sept. 4-10). By contrast, sales of plastic containers, which usually stood at W220-230 million, dropped below the W200 million mark. NewCore Outlet experienced a 50 percent increase in sales of glass containers and a 30 percent decline in sales of plastic containers. Woori Home Shopping sold W180 million worth of glass products in an hour recently, a whopping 40 percent increase compared to its usual sales records.
But some experts say people are reacting too sensitively. We can only presume that environmental hormones negatively affect our body but cannot prove cause and effect clearly, they say. The Korea Vinyl Environmental Council cites a study on phthalates, which are said to be a major cause of genital diseases. A study by an advisory group of the American Chemistry Council concluded that the relationship between phthalates and diseases could not be directly proved, it says. The government has already strengthened regulations on environmental hormones as people¡¯s awareness of their risks improved. Some toxic phthalates, which are used to make PVC more flexible, are banned from use in toys not only in the EU but in Korea as well. Nursery bottles made of polycarbonate have also already gone through tests to prove their safety, and only negligible amounts of Bisphenol A are released when they are boiled. There can be problems if they are boiled for too long, but boiling them for sterilization purposes a moment poses no serious threat. The government has banned manufacturing of clingfilm using phthalates.
¡°In our daily lives we are exposed to agricultural chemicals and chemical substances that are much more powerful than environmental hormones in negatively affecting our body, and we should take into account their complex interaction,¡± says Kim Hyung-sik of Pusan National University¡¯s College of Pharmacy. ¡°I don¡¯t see an urgent need to become too sensitive about environmental hormones if you don¡¯t suffer endometritis or breast cancer and if you are not especially sensitive to them.¡± But Kim said when it comes to children whose hormonal systems are not yet fully developed, it is best to take special care. ¡°Stopping using all kinds of plastic products right now is not a realistic option, but gradually decreasing their use is feasible,¡± he said.
(englishnews@chosun.com )
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