Why plastic container and can food should be avoided? What is inside those food containers?

Statistic and Fact:

A statistic from Organic Consumers Association has shown that out of 97 can foods, more than 57 percent contained detectable and often high levels of BPA.

Consumers Union had found out, in year 2008, there were more than 22 billion cans produced for food and more than 100 billion cans produced for beer and soft drinks were with BPA.

The Center for Disease Control, CDC had conducted a urine sampling, according to the research, 93% of the population has BPA in their body.

A research done by the Harvard School of Public Health to study the levels of chemical Bisphenol A (BPA) in 75 volunteers who ate 12 ounces of soup each day for five days. One group ate fresh soup, while the other ate canned. BPA levels was then measured, result shown that eating canned soup on a daily basis raised urinary BPA levels by a whopping 1,221 percent.

Bisphenol A, BPA:

Bisphenol A (BPA), is an endocrine disruptor, a chemical substance that will affect the secretion and elimination of natural hormones, once the secretion and elimination of the hormone interferes, it will affect the action and function of the hormone. Bisphenol A (BPA) can also mimic body’s own hormones such as estrogen. Bisphenol A has a same functional group with estrogen.

Bisphenol A, BPA

Estrogen

Bisphenol A is a major by-product of the breakdown of epoxy resin and polycarbonate plastic. Epoxy resin often use to coat the inner lining of cans, to create a barrier between the can metal and the food. When the interaction between the polycarbonate chains added heat or acid, the bond will break and BPA was then releases.

  Structure of polycarbonate, PC

What kind of food container contain BPA?

-      

Canned food

    Canned drinks

Reusable water bottle

   Baby bottle

  Dental fillings and sealants

-   

                                                                                                                                                           

       Health effects:  

       Polycystic ovarian syndrome

       Fertility

       Obesity

       Cardiovascular disease

       Diabetes

       Thyroid function

       Disruption of dopaminergic system

       Tumor and cancer

        How to avoid BPA:

       Avoid can food and canned soda or drinks.

  
Especially for those foods that have lower pH, in other word, more acidic food such as tomatoes and fruits. BPA can easily release from the lining of the cans when temperature is high or in an acidic condition.
We can stick with fresh tomatoes and fruits, or the sort come in glass jar. Drink more water and tea also is a better way for our body beyond the harmful chemical BPA.

Fresh tomatos

 fruits

   

                       Learn about recycling codes, avoid number 3 and 7 plastic

   

Number 3 plastics have a high risk to release toxic breakdown products such as pthalates into food and drinks. When manufacturing number 3 plastics, a highly toxic dioxins can be release into the environment, and the materials can off-gas toxics plasticzers into our home.

Number 7 plastics is a wide range plastic resins that doesn’t fit into any other 6 categories of plastic. One of the number 7 plastic is the hard polycarbonate varieties that can leach Bisphenol A, BPA into our food and drinks.

          

    

 Use safe baby bottle and water bottle.

       

 Glass baby bottle without BPA

Water bottle without BPA.

    

BORAX Article

Borax, also known as sodium borate, sodium tetraborate, , is an important boron compound, a mineral, and a salt of boric acid. It is usually a white powder consisting of soft colourless crystals that dissolve easily in water. Boron  is a non-metallic element which never occurs in nature by itself. It mainly exists in the form of borates, compounds formed after combining with other substances, in the environment.

The term borax is used for a number of closely related minerals or chemical compounds that differ in their crystalline water content, but usually refers to the dehydrate. Commercially sold borax is usually partially dehydrated. The international IUPAC representation is given as “Sodium Tetra Borate Decahygrate”. And it density is 1.73 g/cm³. Borax is found   in crystalline form at room temperature.

                      

                           

 Chemical properties

When it comes to its chemical names and properties it is as follows, Its Formula is  Na2[B4O5(OH)4]·8H2O or can be written as Na2B4O7·10H2O. It has melting point of 743° C, and has a pretty high boiling point of  1,575° C. The international IUPAC representation is given as “Sodium Tetra Borate Decahygrate”. And it density is 1.73 g/cm³. Borax is found   in crystalline form at room temperature.
 

Physical properties :

Borax is a crystalline solid and at normal environmental temperatures it shows a number of physical properties which are as follows, the color of a piece of borax compound is clear white. It reflective properties or its luster is Vitreous which means it looks sort of like glassy. Speaking of which, its transparency of borax crystals are in a middle of transparency to semitransparency or translucent. The shape os borax crystals are triangular shape of that of a prism, its prismatic with having kind of square cross sections. The sharp division or cleavage is perfect In one direction. Borax is very light with containing a specific gravity is 1.73.It has a sweet alkaline taste.

 

The minerals that are associated with borax  are colemanite, hanksite, halite, ulixite, calcite and some other borates. The most common and notable occurrence of borax are from Boron, Death Valley, Trona, Turkey, Tibet, Andes Mountains, some localities in California. The best indication fields that can be employed for indicating borax are its color, associations, crystal habits ,its locality and it density.

History(Origination of Borax):

Borax as discovered in the ancient times and was considered as a valuable substance primarily because of its uses, by its founders. Borax was used for mummification by the Egyptions,while the Roman used it  for glass making. It was transported from Tibet to Europe in the 13^th century by Marco Polo Carvans. Borax was considered as a one of a kind and rare commodity in California in 1850s.Mining of Borax  started  in 1880s at Death Valley in California. The word Borax is an  arabic word– the Arabic is said to be from the Persian burah  a word that may have meant potassium nitrate or another fluxing agent. Another name for borax is tincal, from Sanskrit.

Natural sources:

 Borax occurs in arid regions, forming from evaporation of saline lakes. Borax is also synthetically formed as a by-product of mining operations of Borate deposits, and most of the specimens from the famous mine at Boron, California, are formed. 

  Borax mine

                                           Borax rock crushing plant to powder form.

 

Uses: From the time of its discovery till the present times the users and the scientists have managed to discover and make use of Borax in different walks of life.

Due to its chemical Properties it is a good neutron absorber and it’s used in Nuclear Reactors and spent fuel pools to reactivity or either shut down a nuclear reactor in some cases.

Borax is used in making very good buffering agent and Borate Buffers usually at pH 8 are used for preferential equilibration solution in DMP-based crosslinking reaction, it is used in swimming pool to control the pH in it. The BBS (Borate Buffered Saline) is used in coating procedure.

The major use of borax as household product is ,that it makes itself a very good cleaning and washing agent. Cleaning and washing agent for laundry, handwash ,bath, cleaning household  metallic and nonmetallic objects like car, bike, dishes.

20mule laundry powder.

                                      

It works as a very active indoor and out insecticides, ant killer and baits .

Borax has and is playing a part in the gold mining industry. It has  substituted mercury, and is being used as a favorable method for extracting gold in small scale mining facilities. This method has named as borax method and is active in Philippines.

As food additive and presevative  borax have  been used for quite a while as additive in various foods. Since  and borax are effective against yeasts, and to a much lesser extent, against moulds and bacteria, they can be used to preserve food products. In addition, borax as  additives can be used to increase the elasticity and crispiness of foods as well as prevent  darkening of shrimps.

There are several other uses of Borax from fluoride detoxification to cleaning brain cavity of a skull for mounting borax is definitely can be said is blessing in face of the earth from mother nature.

Alcohols and drinking, a vicious cycle.

         The drinking culture. This established culture refers to the practices and customs associated with the consumption of alcoholic beverages. There are those that drink for socializing purposes, binge drinking, part of a standard diet, relaxant and euphoric effects, medical reasons and even for artistic inspirations. However, those that partake excessively in this social culture will inevitably fall prey to the various negative side effects due to alcohol consumption.

 Various alcoholic beverages

What are alcohols?

         An alcohol is a general term for any organic compound which has a hydroxyl group, -OH, bonded to a carbon atom which may be bounded by other carbon atoms or hydrogen.The carbon center should be saturated, having single bonds to three other atoms.The suffix, -ol,  refers to the high priority of the hydroxyl group in the organic compound that is an alcohol.

         Ethanol (CH₃CH₂OH) is the active ingredient in alcoholic beverages which are always produced by the process of fermentation. Ethanol is more commonly referred to as alcohol. Some of the more common ingredients used to distill and ferment alcoholic beverages include grains for whiskeys and beers and grapes for wines and brandy.

          Although the culture of drinking is today's societal norm aside for the exception due to religious purposes, the negative implications far outweigh the positives in terms of both physically and psychologically. 

Below is a table that lists some of the negative complications of alcohol consumption to our health.
       

Complications	Effects and causes
Heart Disease	Liver disease and heart failure.
Dementia	Neurological damage ,memory loss, cognitive problems and alcohol abuse
Cancer	Linked with breast cancer in women, increases the risk of cancers of the mouth, esophagus, pharynx, larynx, colorectal, liver, stomach and ovaries.
Diabetes	Damage to the kidneys done by excessive consumption of alcohol
Obesity	Excessive amounts of alcohol in a standard diet
Mortality Rate	Decreased mortality rate due to the abuse of alcohol
Depression	Dependency on alcohol as a psychoactive drug that has a depressant effect

All in all alcohol consumption has its benefits as well being able to induce body warmth as well as for various medical reasons. However if taken in excessive quantities or abused as a substance, more harm than good will eventually come to the consumer.

Organic chemicals in Cosmetics.

What are the effects Organic chemicals in cosmetics?

Introduction.

In  our world today, organic chemistry is of vital importance  to the petrochemical, pharmaceutical, textile and cosmetic industries  where  a prime concern is the synthesis of new  organic molecules and polymers. They are various  ways in which organic chemistry is playing  a part   in our daily  lives. But we are going to focus on how  organic chemicals have been used  to produce various substances  which are used  on our bodies, known as cosmetics.

What are cosmetics?

By definition, cosmetics are body care substances  that  used to enhance  the appearance  or odour of  the human body. They are generally mixture of chemicals compounds  of which some of them are derived while  some are synthetic.

In the cosmetic industry, they make use  of various synthetic chemicals to produce  various forms of cosmetic products such as body lotion,  shampoo, shaving cream, etc. it  is  important to note that most of these substances are also  used  in industrial manufacturing  processes  to  clean  industrial equipment, stabilize  pesticides,  and grease gears.

In most developing countries and most especially  in the United States, major gaps in the Federal law allow the cosmetic industry to put  thousands of synthetic chemicals into personal care products even  if those chemicals  are linked to cancer,  infertility of birth defect. As a result of this, it has led to an increased rate of breast cancer incidence since  untested  chemicals have now been introduced steadily into our  environment.

Effect of organic chemicals  in cosmetics  on our bodies?

Most organic chemicals  found in cosmetics are  very good for  our bodies some  of the are safe cosmetics while some of them are  considered  toxic and hazardous to our bodies as well as our environment.  However prolonged use  of cosmetics also  cause damage to our bodies too.

In the table below are some group of chemicals mostly found in found  in cosmetics, their uses  and their side effects.

Organic chemicals	Uses	Health hazards
1.      1. Butyl acetate	It is used in producing nail straighteners and nail polishes	Its vapour may cause dizziness or drowsiness.  Excess usage causes the skin to  crack  and become   dry.
2.  butylated hydroxotoulene	It act as antioxidant which helps to slow the rate at which  a  product changes colour over time,	It may cause   skin and eye irritation.
3. Formaldehyde	It used as  a disinfectant  and preservative  in a variety  of products  such as soaps, deodorant, shaving cream,  adhesive, shampoo, nail polish	It causes multiple health concerns such as cancer,  immune system damage,  genetic damage, triggering asthma and eye irritation
4. Diethanolamine  (DEA)	It is used as  emulsifiers  and foaming agents  in  products  such as shampoos, shaving creams, moisturizers, and baby  washes.	It can  acts as a carcinogen because it can be  absorbed  into the body through the skin It disrupts the hormone in the body.
5. Coal  tar	It dissolves  dead skin cells ,  it is used to control itching and scaling  in the body.	It is a human carcinogen  which could cause cancer.
6.Toulene	It is found in nail polish and hair dye, it  acts as  a solvent to improve adhesion  and add  gloss.	It causes  reproductive and developmental damage, It can be carcinogenic  and it also causes  liver and  kidney damage.
7. Lead  acetate	It  used in making toothpaste , it is also added as  an ingredient in some  lipsticks  and   men’s hair dye	Prolonged  use of product contain   this substance causes  brain damage and developmental delays even at extremely low concentration.
8. Phthalates	It is used to keep  colour and scent  dissolved  in nail polish , perfume ,  hair spray and  others.	It causes  low sperm count in male, genital birth defects,  it also reduces  female fertility