subject: Food Safety And The Use Of Plastic Containers [print this page] Food has been stored by people in plastic containers for quite some time. There is now a question of food safety and the usage of plastics to store food. The internet is a useful tool for locating results and information from ongoing studies and research regarding food safety, the prevention of food poisoning from E. coli or salmonella, or to find out about diseases that plastics can cause or exacerbate.
Phthalates, or endocrine disrupting chemicals also known as EDCs, are found in plastic, as proved by research. Disruption of the receptors for sex hormones and cancer can be caused by these chemicals. To keep from this sort of contamination, you should not use plastic containers to keep food. Rather, containers made of glass or steel should be used, which will stop phthalates from oozing out of plastic and into your food.
The majority of articles on food and plastic container usage will bring up the fact that people are worried about using plastic dishes to microwave food. This concern has not yet been firmly backed up by scientists, but most experts warn against it anyway. To be safe, it is wise to refrain from utilizing plastic containers to heat food in the microwave and to minimize the amount of direct contact between plastic cling wrap and food that is heated in the microwave.
Bottled water is another concern with food safety. We have a lot of water in our bodies, so to maintain health, we have to rehydrate daily by drinking water. Since more people are trying to stay healthy, bottled water is the most popular source of fluid intake. Water is a solvent, sometimes known as the universal solvent, and because of this, plastic bottled water could contain phthalates that have seeped out of the plastic and into the water. People either opt to skip bottled water or they decide to disregard the warnings because of the convenience it provides for a thirst-quenching sip on-the-go. Extreme changes in temperature and the amount of time the water is left in the bottle increases the peril.
There are different findings with research in food safety dependent upon who is doing or funding the research. Therefore, a lot of what has come to light is questionable and open to interpretation. Until the research is clearer about the effects of plastic, it's best to stick to glass or steel containers to keep food and by no means put plastic in the microwave.
