But… during the segment Ellie also spoke with Dr. Terry Barber with the Columbus Chapter of the American Academy of Pediatrics. This is what he had to say in regards to the chemical Bisphenol-A:

“The scientific community has absolutely no concern… There isn’t any evidence for me to say it is unsafe to buy the BPA products.”

If there isn’t a concern, why are retailers pulling products made from poly-carbonates off of their shelves? Why has Canada restricted the import of any plastics that contain BPA?

BPA may not be a concern to the scientific community in small doses. But it is a concern for your children. Especially babies who might be exposed to BPA in baby bottles many times a day, children who use sippy cups made from poly-carbonate plastics day after day, and even for adults who drink water from the ever-popular disposable water bottle. One drink from a poly-carbonate cup won’t kill you, but studies of BPA have shown neural and behavioral effects have been seen in infants and children. See the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences FAQ on BPA and the testimony of Norris Alderson, Ph. D. from the BPA task force.

For this reason parents are turning to BPA free products, like our Green to Grow BPA-free Baby Bottles and stainless steel sippy cups.

As a parent, what to put your baby’s food in is your decision, but since there are so many BPA-free products available, it’s certainly worth it to switch.

Want to share your comments? Check out Ellie’s Blog.

The story will air this afternoon, on First at Four. If you have come looking for the products shown, check out our Safe Feeding Category, or for Kleen Kanteen and Sigg Bottles as well as great BPA-free products for adults, turn to Baying Hound.

Wondering if you should make the switch to BPA-free products for your child? Here’s a couple rules of thumb. First, plastics labeled 1, 2 and 5 are the safest plastic. Turn the cup or bowl over and look for the number inside the recycling symbol. Sometimes the symbol will have letters beneath it. The letters “PP” stand for poly-propylene. This is one of the more stable and safe plastics. The letters “PC” stand for poly-carbonate. This plastic is known to have bisphenol-A and should be avoided.

If your plastic isn’t marked, you can learn some things about it just by look and feel. Softer plastics often have phthalates which should also be avoided. However some soft plastics are thermoplastic elastomer, like in our Foogo Sippy Cups, or silicone, like the valve in our Safe Sippy. Poly-carbonate plastic is often used to make plastic look like glass. So clear, glass-like plastic cups could be made from the harmful PC plastic. Look for plastics that are hard, solid and opaque, and choose sippy cups and food containers that either use no plastic or do not allow the food or drink to sit in plastic, instead they have glass or metal reservoirs with plastic tops.

Remember food and drink should never be heated in plastic, and hot foods and drinks should not be transferred into plastic containers. The longer food or drink is exposed to harmful plastics, the more chance there is of chemicals like BPA leaching into the food and drink and then being consumed by your child. Feel free to give us a call if you have questions about BPA or any of the products we carry.

We have listed the gorgeous and completely BPA (and plastic!) free Bambu Mini Me Bowls. Currently we only have the cayenne color available, but hope to have more in August.

Get Sporked!

Free Bambu Spork with $35 purchase

Get Rattled!

Free Made in USA Wooden Rattle
with $70 purchase

Choose disk, bell or spin
by entering in the comments during checkout.

Get Clean!

Free Safe Sippy with $100 purchase

Choose pink, blue or green by entering in the comments during checkout.

Want to mix and match? Of course! Spend $105 and you can choose to recieve a Spork and a Rattle instead of a Safe Sippy. Spend $135 and choose a Safe Sippy and a Spork. Simply enter your choices in the comments field during checkout.

Please note that these offers are only available while supplies last or until July 31, 2008. We reserve the right to exchange the offer with an equal-value or different color item than requested. Order amount must equal or exceed the amount necessary for the prize you are choosing before taxes or shipping is applied.

With a newly redesigned spout, valve and top, the Safe Sippy is back and better than ever. The valve now is larger and shaped for easy insertion and removal. The spout is still straw shaped, but easier for children to use. The top threads directly on to the stainless steel, with the plastic top covering and protecting the lip of the cup from dings and damage.

The Safe Sippy is a cup that will grow with your child. With it’s straw-shaped spout it encourages good muscular development in your child’s mouth, plus the cup does not look too ‘babyish’ for those cool big kids. The cup handles are removable, so little ones can easily grab and later on the handles can be removed.

Grab your Safe Sippy today, in pink, blue or green. Clean in, clean out.

Getting away is grand! Seeing the sights, playing with your kids all day, a temporary hiatus from your responsibilities. Sometimes, though, getting to your destination can cause stress and dampen the excitement. Here’s a couple ideas of games to play in the car or on a plane that can help keep your children occupied and looking forward to the trip.

Children ages 4 and up will enjoy keeping a scrapbook of their trip. While the younger ones may not have the ability to keep the book organized or neat, they will still enjoy making a book all their own. We found a small photo book with blank pages for our son to use on a trip we took last year. We gave it to him at the airport and explained what it was for. I also packed glue, safety scissors and colored pencils for him to use. He had a great time searching for things to add to his book, like pamphlets from the places we saw, ticket stubs and fliers. In the evening we helped him write down what he remembered from the places we visited.

Pack your bags with fun things to do in the car or on the plane. Older kids will enjoy writing and coloring, doing activity books or reading. Younger children might need something a bit more entertaining, but if traveling by plane, realize your fellow travelers may not appreciate noisy toys.

Magnetic mazes are great for kids over 2. The Colorback Sea Turtle Magnetic Maze from HaPe has multiple uses for kids of all ages.