BPA - The Hidden Culprit to Subtle Weight Gain
Are toxic chemical poisoning your weight loss efforts? Here's what's going on...
Good morning everyone, and welcome back to the Preserv Wellness Substack! As always, I’m excited to be sitting down and writing this newsletter to give you my personal opinions on BPA and weight gain. My goal today is to break down everything to do with BPA exposure, weight gain, detoxification, and prevention techniques. So without further ado, let’s get into it!
What the Heck is BPA?
Before we can talk about all the scary effects of BPA on the body, it’s important to first know what BPA even is. Bisphenol-A (BPA) is a chemical used in the production of plastics to improve their structural integrity while reducing their physical weight. BPA is found in all types of products like plastic water bottles, the lining of cans, and even thermal receipts. Since these products are everywhere, we are all exposed to BPA all the time.
Now, the world has known that BPA can be harmful for some time now. For this reason, various governmental bodies have set safe upper limits for BPA exposure in humans. In 2015, the European Food and Safety Authority set the safe tolerable intake at 4µg/kg of body weight per day. For reference, there are 1 billion micrograms in a kilogram. This means that you could presumably consume 4 billionths of your body weight in BPA without any adverse health effects. With most exposures only being a few micrograms each, this gives a pretty large margin of safety.
However, the European Food and Safety Authority recently reviewed updated data and revised their original safe upper limit. As a response to the new data, they are now stating that the safe upper limit is 0.2ng/kg of body weight per day. This is a 20,000x reduction from the previous limit of 4µg/kg of body weight per day. Yikes!
Watch this video to learn more about this!
Negative Effects of BPA
So now it’s clear that we really don’t want BPA to get into our body. But why is that?
Endocrine Disruption
One of the main reasons that BPA is so harmful is because of its status as an endocrine disrupting chemical (EDC). EDCs are molecules that interact with our endocrine system and scramble hormone signaling throughout the body.
BPA specifically acts as a xenoestrogen (xeno = foreign/outside the body). This means that BPA is able to bind to estrogen receptors and activate tissues in a similar manner to estrogen. However, BPA does not act identically to estrogen and causes all sorts of issues by binding to these receptors.
Some of the main issues are hormonal. BPA has been documented to alter estrogen, testosterone, and thyroid hormone levels. BPA has also been associated with issues in fertility, puberty onset, fetal development, and even certain cancers. These appear to be the largest reason that governmental agencies are cracking down on BPA safety limits
BPA and Weight
Beyond overt endocrine issues, BPA also has an influence on weight gain. This effect appears to 3-step process.
Step 1: BPA lowers adiponectin levels. Adiponectin is a hormone that tells our fat cells (adipocytes) to break down and release stored fat molecules (triglycerides). Since BPA lowers levels of this hormone, the fat remains stored inside of the fat cells and is not burned off as energy.
Step 2: As fat continues to accumulate in fat cells, they eventually become overstuffed. As a result, the body needs to find other places to store fat. The liver and muscles are typically the place where this fat is deposited into. This can lead towards fatty liver disease (NAFLD), decreased muscle mass (sarcopenia), and insulin resistance.
Step 3: The accumulation of fat causes systemic inflammation. The inflammatory molecules cause the body to store more fat and become more insulin resistant. This creates a vicious cycle.
What to Do?
Ok, now I’ve probably given you a good scare about the role BPA may be playing in your health. But don’t stress. There is a lot we can do to prevent exposure and support our body in removing BPA.
Prevention
The most important thing to do about BPA is avoid exposure. By and large, this means removing sources of oral ingestion. The most common sources of BPA exposure include can linings, packaged foods, and plastic bottles. Avoid products containing BPA and avoid packaged foods as much as possible.
Opting for glass, ceramic, or stainless steel containers can be a great way to avoid BPA exposure while also being more sustainable. BPA leaches the most under sunlight, heat, and acidic conditions. So, make sure to keep water bottles out of the hot sunlight and avoid acidic packaged foods like tomatoes.
Many canned goods and water bottles are now BPA free. However, many of these products are simply swapping BPA for other chemicals that have not yet been studied. These include chemicals like BPS and BPF. Literally WTF. My advice here is just to avoid plastics altogether if possible.
Another random source of BPA is in thermal receipt paper. These are the receipts you get at the store. While it’s probably a really small source of exposure, BPA can go through your skin into your bloodstream. This appears to be more of an issue for workers who are regularly handling receipts and is currently the topic of much research as it may be unsafe longterm.
Supplements
The good news about BPA is that our body can remove half of a BPA exposure in <6 hours. This means that the toxic effects are usually from prolonged and chronic exposure. So as I previously stated, the main strategy is to prevent exposure altogether.
That being said, there are some supplements that have been studied in relation to BPA. As always, speak with your healthcare team before adding any supplements to your regimen. Supplements are not always safe for everyone.
Melatonin
BPA is known to cause issues in sperm count and vitality. Some research has suggested that low dose melatonin can be used to protect sperm against the negative effects of BPA exposure. I would suggest taking melatonin at night to prevent disruptions in circadian rhythm.
Sulforaphane
Sulforaphane is a phytochemical found in cruciferous vegetables that has profound antioxidant effects throughout the entire body. In vitro research suggests that sulforaphane can protect the liver from the fat storing effects of BPA exposure.
Milk Thistle
Milk thistle is a fan favorite liver health supplement. Perhaps it is then unsurprising that milk thistle has been shown to protect the liver from the hepatotoxic effects of BPA.
Conclusion
BPA exposure is certainly an avenue worth exploring when it comes to stubborn weight gain without a clear root cause. The truth is that we are all exposed to BPA. Though it can feel overwhelming to address toxin exposure, some simple swaps (plastic → glass) can be a really simple way to protect yourself from negative health impacts.
If you are overwhelmed or concerned about potential BPA exposure or other weight gain issues, please book a free discovery call using the button below to see how we can help you out.