Food system contributions to Bisphenol-A exposures

This research investigates the exposure of the United States population to dietary sources of Bisphenol-A (BPA) and the influence of socio-economic factors on patterns of consumption of BPA containing foods. Bisphenol-A exposure from the food system is ubiquitous due to the migration of this chemical into food from epoxy linings of can and beverage containers and polycarbonate plastic bottles. BPA's endocrine disrupting properties and its possible link to numerous adverse health outcomes makes BPA exposure a foremost public health concern. A secondary data analysis was employed to explore BPA exposure patterns in the food system. Data from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) 2003-2008 are utilized to draw correlations between urinary BPA concentrations and known dietary sources of BPA. Demographic data including race/ethnicity, sex, age, income level, education, and food security status are applied to evaluate susceptibility to BPA exposure. Dietary information was mined from Day 1 of the NHANES 24-hour dietary recall. USDA food codes of items reported eaten were recoded to identify foods that are canned. The NHANES Food Security questionnaire responses were an additional source for isolating diets with a potential risk of high canned food content and subsequent BPA exposure. This study is ongoing. The anticipated findings will confirm an expected correlation between diets high in canned food and high concentrations of urinary BPA. This research also anticipates that food insecure persons will be vulnerable to higher urinary BPA concentrations than the rest of the population due to their greater exposure to canned foods.