Isabelle Pinard
Reporter
Chemistry teacher Christina Cinti leaves the lab room quickly, grabing her Sigg bottle before she walks out the door with her tennis team and unaware the inner liner of her water bottle can seep a hormone-disrupting chemical known as BPA into her water.
Many people turned to Sigg bottles as an alternative to plastic water bottles containing BPA.
“I use my Sigg bottle because it’s environmentally friendly, safe to drink from and I won’t have to keep recycling plastic bottles or throw away cans,” said sophomore Nicole Kristen Hvid.
Consumers were not aware Sigg bottles contained BPA until tests had revealed positive levels of BPA in Sigg’s inner liner in 2006.
“I always thought that Sigg bottles are really useful, and I drink out of mine all the time,” said freshman Kimmy Pace. “Now I am not so sure about drinking out of my Sigg anymore because
of the BPA issue.”
Almost 3 tons of BPA has been mass produced globally, according to the Chemical Market Associates, Inc. (CMAI), and used as a base for making
polycarbonate plastic, which is in almost every manufactured product because it is lightweight, tough, heat and electricity resistant.
The chemical can interfere with normal functioning of the hormone system by blocking or exaggerating hormonal responses, which can affect the reproductive system and can cause behavioral problems.
Epoxy resins commonly line metal cans as a means of maintaining the quality
of the products inside. These resins and polycarbonates are also in the inner linings of the Sigg drinking bottles.
Industrial researchers worldwide, studying the potential for BPA to migrate
from polycarbonate products into food and beverages, say the potential migration of BPA is extremely low.
BPA seepage into food is less than five parts per million. Consumers would have to ingest more than 1,300 pounds of food and beverages containing BPA everyday for the chemical to affect their health, according to National Institutes of Health.
“These health issues are a problem, but I think that I would still drink out of the one that I already have because I already have it so why not use it,” said freshman Kimmy Pace.
The Sigg Company has been trying to get back on track since August 2008 by manufacturing new Sigg bottles with a BPA-free liner since that is tasteless, scentless, leach-free and just as durable as the old liner.
Consumers who want to replace previous bottles containing BPA can take advantage of Sigg’s exchange program for their customers that last until Oct 31. Customers can obtain the procedures for the program from Sigg’s Web site, http://mysigg.com .