What do you store leftover food in? follow up on chemicals/ autism thread

[Anonymous]

Wholefoods also sells wax sandwich bags which are an alternative to plastic sandwich bags.

[Anonymous]

This is helpful but I had never heard of not putting lids in the dishwasher either. What is the reasoning behind this? And just to clarify - if it is BPA-free, is the dishwasher okay?

[Anonymous]

Does anyone else think this is major overkill???

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Does anyone else think this is major overkill???

No. I think it's reasonable caution. It doesn't take much effort or money to use glass instead of plastic, and it reduces potential risk.

The U.S. is one of the last countries to deal with BPA issues. Canada banned it awhile ago.

IMO we can't depend on our government to advise us on safety issues - it is too heavily influenced by special interests.

[Anonymous]

I don't think it's overkill.

We use glass. Why not? What's the difference.

I actually like glass better for storage. It's easier to clean. Doesn't stain like plastic.

[Anonymous]

We use glass. Mostly pyrex for storage. For microwaving we use a paper towel to cover or parchment paper (usually sold next to the cling wrap). I don't freak out if something is in plastic, but why not take this easy step to reduce some exposure.

[Anonymous]

We use glass at home, but DC's preschool doesn't allow glass, so we send lunch in BPA-free plastic containers. Milk goes in a steel thermos. He can't open the stainless steel containers we were looking at.

[Anonymous]

Food that is stored for a while takes on the flavour of the plastic it is stored in. It does not take much effort or money to switch to glass and they last longer and do not get grungy like plastic. So it just makes sense. To sensible people that is.

[Anonymous]

With regard to safety, haven't they been using BPA forEVER? So as far as autism goes, it's probably not related. I read an article recently, though, that indicated that BPA was found in products that were supposedly BPA-free, suggesting that BPA is now in the environment and somewhat unavoidable. That said, I try to minimize the amount of plastic products I use -- I use glass products when I can.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:With regard to safety, haven't they been using BPA forEVER? So as far as autism goes, it's probably not related. I read an article recently, though, that indicated that BPA was found in products that were supposedly BPA-free, suggesting that BPA is now in the environment and somewhat unavoidable. That said, I try to minimize the amount of plastic products I use -- I use glass products when I can.

My understanding was that BPA was linked to endocrine disruption, not autism.

[Anonymous]

My kids eat yogurt every day. Am I harming them because they're eating yogurt out of plastic containers? I understand not wanting to microwave the plastic, but why can't you send food to school in plastic containers?

[Anonymous]

We use frigovere containers, a brand we found at crate and barrel. They have a great seal and stack inside of themselves.

I am also more careful than ever about pthalates and parabens. I haven't completely phased them out, but I'm trying hard.

I didn't know as much about this stuff when I was pregnant with my son, which I both regret and feel thankful for (I would have driven myself insane).

[Anonymous]

I use the BPA-free, Michael Graves food storage at Target. We only handwash and we never microwave in the plastic anyway, always pouring the food onto a dish or in a bowl instead. (Note: ignore the reviews, these work great the lids are just really tight). http://www.target.com/gp/detail.html/177-9091743-3198337?asin=B002ZLF7W8&AFID=Froogle_df&LNM=|B002ZLF7W8&CPNG=kitchen&ref=tgt_adv_XSG10001

I also use the BPA-free plastic bowls and plates by Munchkin for DD's food. We microwave them for maybe 30 seconds or so, but I think they should be okay.

http://www.target.com/Munchkin-Toddler-Plates-5-pk/dp/B001E6SWCC/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&searchView=grid5&frombrowse=0&node=1038576&keywords=munchkin%20plate&field_browse=1038576&searchSize=30&id=Munchkin%20Toddler%20Plates%205-pk&field_availability=-2&refinementHistory=subjectbin%2Ctarget_com_age%2Ctarget_com_gender-bin%2Ctarget_com_character-bin%2Cprice%2Ctarget_com_primary_color-bin%2Ctarget_com_size-bin%2Ctarget_com_brand-bin&searchNodeID=1038576&field_launch-date=-1y&searchRank=target104545&searchPage=1&field_keywords=munchkin%20plate

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:My understanding was that BPA was linked to endocrine disruption, not autism.

A friend of mine told me she suspected years of heating up and cooking food in plastic containers screwed up her endocrine system. While still in her 20s, she gained weight, grew excess hair, developed insomnia and her periods became irregular. She went to see all sorts of specialists and they did a lot of tests but did not know what was wrong with her. She said that when she cut out cooking food in plasticware in the microwave, her symptoms got better. I remember her cooking spaghetti noodles in plastic containers! I guess you have to do this pretty regularly though.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:My kids eat yogurt every day. Am I harming them because they're eating yogurt out of plastic containers? I understand not wanting to microwave the plastic, but why can't you send food to school in plastic containers?

Honestly, I think the containers are fine, so long as they aren't heated or scratched.