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CDC News- CDC's New Jersey branch has moved to a larger 15,000 sq ft. building in Union New
Jersey. The new facility will enable CDC to have all NJ deliveries originate locally.
In addition, the expanded equipment service department will be able to handle virtually
all equipment refurbishing. So far CDC has added 30 additional employees to its NJ division
in the past year.
Sustainability- CDC has added a whole line of ecologically "friendly" disposable
products. This is a dynamic area with new products coming to market all the time, watch here for the latest news.
Coffee: Our new Estate Select El Salvador coffee is a sweet tasting Rain Forest
Alliance bean
sourced from the las Zerro Ranas plantation. We developed this brew at the request
of a leading investment bank that was looking for the ultimate coffee, where it
won out in blind taste test over the "big name" coffees. This may be our best coffee
yet!
Fuel Surcharge
As fuel costs continue to set new record highs in 2008,
we at CDC are proud to be able to keep our fuel surcharge to the lowest levels
in the industry. The charge is calculated on the weighted average cost of fuel
for our fleet (regular gas and diesel) as indicated in the chart
below.
| Fuel Costs |
Surcharge
(per delivery) |
| $2.00-$2.25 |
25 cents |
| $2.251-$2.50 |
50 cents |
| $2.501-$2.75 |
75 cents |
| $2.751-$3.00 |
$1.00 |
| $3.001-$3.25 |
$1.25 |
| $3.251-$3.50 |
$1.50 |
| $3.501-$3.75 |
$1.75 |
|
$3.751-$4.00 |
$2.25 |
|
$4.001-$4.25 |
$2.50 |
|
$4.251-$4.50 |
$2.75 |
|
$4.501-$4.75 |
$3.00 |
|
$4.751-$5.00 |
$3.25 |
|
$5.001-$5.25 |
$3.50
|
|
$5.251-$5.50 |
$3.75
|
|
$5.501-$5.751 |
$4.00
|
The above surcharge will apply to each invoice
regardless of the size of the order. Therefore it will
help you save and us to conserve fuel if you “
double-up” your orders!
Are
5 gallon plastic water bottles safe to use?
Separating
Myth from Reality
Recently there have
been media stories raising questions about the safety of
polycarbonate plastic bottles due to a key component of the plastic:
bisphenol-A (BPA). Containers using this plastic are identified by
the number 7 for recycling purposes.
The facts are:
Virtually all
re-usable 5 gallon water bottles worldwide are made with
polycarbonate plastics and have been for over 40 years.
This plastic has
been approved for use in water bottles by every regulatory
authority, worldwide, that has considered the issue including:
The US FDA
European Food
Safety Authority
Norwegian Food
Safety Authority
Offical Food
Control Authority of the Canton of Zurich, Switzerland
NSF International
Japanese Ministry
for Health, Labor and Welfare
United Kingdom
Food Standards Agency
Those raising
issues with the use of polycarbonate beverage containers principally
raise questions about the migration of BPA when hot liquids are
introduced into the container. This is not an issue with bottled
water since the water is cold when it is bottled and is only heated
after it leaves the bottle on the water dispenser.
Note:
Most research indicates migration is not an issue providing the
container is washed at least once with hot water.
For more detailed
information regarding the safety of polycarbonate water bottles
please read the following articles. We also recommend visiting
http://www.bisphenol-a.org/
where you will find a wealth of information including references to
scholarly research on the subject of bisphenol A.
New
Data from CDC Confirms Human Exposure to Bisphenol A in the United
States is Far Below Safe Limits
November 1, 2007
Summary
The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has
recently published biomonitoring data on bisphenol A from a
large-scale study that is representative of the US population.
That data indicates that typical human daily intake of bisphenol A
is approximately 50 nanograms/kg bodyweight/day. These
levels are about 1 million times below the levels where no
adverse effects on reproduction and development were observed in
comprehensive multi-generation animal studies. Likewise,
these levels are about 1 thousand times below lifetime daily
intake levels conservatively set by government bodies in the US
and Europe. Exposures below the lifetime daily intake levels
are expected to have no adverse effect on health.
Overall, the CDC data indicates that human exposure to bisphenol A
is very low and strongly supports the conclusion that exposure to
bisphenol A poses no known risk to human health.
What Did CDC Report?
Since 1999, the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
(CDC) has conducted the National Health and Nutrition Examination
Survey (NHANES) to assess the health and nutritional status of
adults and children in the United States. The survey, which
currently examines about 5,000 people each year, includes a
detailed interview and a range of physical examinations. The
survey is designed to produce information that is representative
of the US population aged 2 months and older.(1)
Urine and blood samples are collected for clinical chemistry
testing and a subset of these samples are also analyzed for the
presence of various natural or synthetic substances, a technique
known as biomonitoring.(2)
For the first time, CDC has analyzed urine samples from a
nationally representative group of people for the presence of
bisphenol A in the NHANES 2003-2004 survey. Their evaluation
of this data has recently been published in a scientific
journal.(3)
A total of 2,517 urine samples from people of 6-85 years of age
were analyzed for bisphenol A. Since the NHANES survey also
collects demographic information, CDC’s report includes
statistical analyses for the entire study population as a whole,
as well as analyses for several subgroups defined by gender, age
and other demographic parameters.
What Does the Data Say About Human Exposure to Bisphenol A?
Bisphenol A was detected in 92.6% of the urine samples, which is
representative of the US population. For the whole
population, the median concentration of bisphenol A in urine was
2.7 nanograms/milliliter (parts per billion). There were
only slight differences found between the demographic subgroups
that were separately analyzed, with all median values in the range
of 1.9 to 4.2 nanograms/milliliter. This indicates that no
subgroup is exposed to bisphenol A at substantially higher or
lower levels versus the population as a whole.
In the human body, bisphenol A is efficiently converted to a
metabolite known as a glucuronide,(2)
which has no known biological activity and is rapidly and entirely
excreted into urine. Before analysis, human urine samples
are first treated with an enzyme that hydrolyzes the glucuronide
back to bisphenol A, which is easier to measure. Although
bisphenol A is measured and reported by CDC, this does not mean
that bisphenol A itself is present in the body or in urine.
Because bisphenol A is so rapidly excreted from the body into
urine, it is possible to estimate daily intake of bisphenol A from
the concentrations measured in urine.(4)
For the population as a whole, the median daily intake of
bisphenol A is estimated to be approximately 50 nanograms/kg
bodyweight/day. Consistent with the concentration values,
daily intakes do not vary substantially among the different
demographic subgroups with median values ranging from
approximately 33 to 80 nanograms/kg bodyweight/day.
What Does the Data Tell Us About the Safety of Bisphenol A?
To put the biomonitoring data into perspective, it is helpful to
compare typical daily intakes to acceptable daily intakes set by
government bodies. The acceptable daily intakes are derived
from toxicity studies to which conservative safety factors are
applied to estimate lifetime exposure levels that are expected to
be without adverse effects. Typical daily intake values can
also be compared directly to doses shown to cause no adverse
effects in toxicity studies.
A typical daily intake of 50 nanograms/kg bodyweight/day is about
1 million times lower than levels where no adverse effects on
reproduction or development were observed in multi-generation
animal studies, (5)
which indicates a very large margin of safety.
By application of safety factors, the European Food Safety
Authority (EFSA) has recently set a Tolerable Daily Intake (TDI)
of 50 micrograms/kg bodyweight/day.(6)
This value is identical to the Reference Dose established by the
US Environmental Protection Agency.(7)
In comparison, a typical daily bisphenol A intake of 50
nanograms/kg bodyweight/day is 1 thousand times lower; this
indicates that there is a substantial margin of safety between
actual levels to which the US population is exposed and safe
exposure levels.
Overall, the new CDC biomonitoring data on bisphenol A indicates
that actual human exposure to bisphenol A is far below levels that
could cause adverse health effects and strongly supports the
conclusion that exposure to bisphenol A poses no known risk to
human health.
(1)
Information on the NHANES program is available at
http://www.cdc.gov/nchs/about/major/nhanes/intro_mec.htm.
(2)
For more information on biomonitoring and bisphenol A, see
http://www.bisphenol-a.org/whatsNew/20050504.html
and http://www.bisphenol-a.org/whatsNew/20050926.html.
(3)
“Exposure of the U.S. population to bisphenol A and
4-tertiary-octylphenol: 2003-2004,” A. M. Calafat, X. Ye,
L.-Y. Wong, J. A. Reidy, and L. L. Needham, Environmental Health
Perspectives. Available on-line on October 24, 2007 at
http://dx.doi.org/10.1289/ehp.10753.
(4)
Daily intakes are estimated by multiplying the measured
concentrations of bisphenol A with a typical urine output per day,
and dividing by the measured bodyweights of the study
participants. This results in daily intakes expressed in the
commonly used metric of nanograms/kg bodyweight/day.
(5)
“Three-generation reproductive toxicity study of dietary
bisphenol A in CD Sprague-Dawley rats”, R. W. Tyl, C. B.
Myers, M. C. Marr, et al., Toxicological Sciences (2002),
68:121-146.
(6)
For a discussion of the EFSA TDI, see
http://www.bisphenol-a.org/whatsNew/20070201EFSA.html.
(7)
See http://www.epa.gov/iris.
Are
the Myths About Polycarbonate Bottles True? New Information
Supports the Safe Use of Polycarbonate Bottles
February 5, 2008
Summary
For decades, polycarbonate plastic has been safely used to make
baby bottles and reusable water bottles. The safety of these
products has been supported by numerous science-based safety
evaluations of bisphenol A that have been conducted by independent
government and scientific bodies worldwide. For example,
recent evaluations by the European Food Safety Authority and NSF
International both provide strong support for the safety of
polycarbonate bottles. In spite of this strong scientific
support, numerous myths, misinformation and scare stories about
polycarbonate bottles continue to circulate. Several new
studies have carefully examined these myths and provide additional
strong support for the safe use of polycarbonate bottles.
What Do We Know About the Safety of Polycarbonate Bottles?
Polycarbonate plastic has been the material of choice for baby
bottles and reusable water bottles for decades because it is
lightweight, highly shatter-resistant, and transparent.
During that time, many studies have been conducted to assess the
potential for trace levels of bisphenol A to migrate from
polycarbonate bottles into foods or beverages. The
conclusions from those studies and comprehensive safety
evaluations by government bodies worldwide are that polycarbonate
bottles are safe for use.
Nevertheless, myths, misinformation and scare stories about
polycarbonate bottles continue to circulate, in particular
regarding real-life conditions of use that are claimed to result
in the release of harmful levels of bisphenol A. Several new
studies from respected scientists and organizations are now
available to clarify whether any of the myths are true and whether
the scare stories have merit.
What Are the Myths and What New Information is Available?
Myth #1: Migration Increases to Unsafe Levels at High
Temperatures
A recent scare story,(1)
based on a small-scale study from the University of Cincinnati,
claimed that the level of bisphenol A released from polycarbonate
plastic bottles increased when the bottles were filled with
boiling water, and remained elevated when the bottles were
subsequently filled with water at room temperature.
Increased migration into boiling water is not news at all since it
is well known as a general phenomenon that migration levels
increase with increasing temperature.
The claim that bisphenol A migration levels remain elevated after
a single treatment with boiling water was not confirmed in a far
more comprehensive study(2)
from researchers at the University of Athens who examined
migration over repeated cycles to determine what happens under
real-life repetitive use of polycarbonate bottles. These
researchers found that elevated migration levels are a transient
effect that quickly recedes to a baseline level with continued
use, even when boiling water was used in each subsequent cycle.
Even the highest levels of bisphenol A observed in these new
studies are well below science-based safety standards set by
government bodies.
Myth #2: Microwave Heating Leads to Elevated Migration
Levels
The myth that heating baby bottles in a microwave oven increases
migration of bisphenol A to unsafe levels was tested in a study
published in 2008 by TNO, a prominent Dutch research
organization.(3)
In TNO’s study, polycarbonate baby bottles from eighteen
different brands sold in Europe were subjected to a series of
tests to determine the level of bisphenol A that migrates under
real-life microwave heating or sterilizing conditions.
Bottles were filled with water, heated to boiling with microwave
heating, boiled for one minute, and cooled. The procedure
was then repeated two more times for each bottle after rinsing,
and bisphenol A was measured in the water from each cycle.
As expected, the study demonstrates that microwave heating has no
effect on migration of bisphenol A from polycarbonate bottles.
This study indicates that microwave heating can be safely used to
either warm the contents of a polycarbonate bottle(4)
or to sterilize the bottles. Migration levels measured in
this and earlier studies using other modes of heating are all well
below science-based safety standards set by government agencies.
Myth #3: Cleaning Polycarbonate Bottles in a Dishwasher
is Unsafe
This myth suggests that polycarbonate bottles will degrade if
cleaned in a dishwasher, leading to the release of unsafe levels
of bisphenol A in subsequent uses of the bottle. The myth
originated in a study from 2003 in which laboratory animal cages
and water bottles were inadvertently washed at high temperature
with a highly caustic floor cleaning detergent and then
autoclaved,(5)
conditions that are of little relevance to actual use of
polycarbonate bottles in the home.
Researchers from the Norwegian Food Safety Authority and the
Official Food Control Authority of the Canton of Zürich,
Switzerland recently conducted a very comprehensive set of
experiments designed to assess whether any real-life dishwashing
condition, “even rather improbable conditions and
scenarios,” could lead to bisphenol A levels above safety
standards.(6)
Based on the data, they concluded “that even under extreme
conditions and scenarios the amount of BPA released from
polycarbonate baby bottles is clearly below the TDI [Tolerable
Daily Intake; a European science-based safety standard] for
babies.”
Under normal dishwashing conditions, which includes effective
rinsing to remove detergent, the migration levels noted in this
study are typical of what has been observed in many earlier
studies and are far below science-based safety standards.
This study, as well as a number of others, confirms that
polycarbonate baby bottles can be safely cleaned in a dishwasher.
Myth #4: Old or Scratched Bottles May Release Unsafe
Levels of Bisphenol A
A corollary to this myth, which asserts that old bottles have
degraded and will release unsafe levels of bisphenol A, is that
polycarbonate bottles should not be cleaned with a brush.
However, recent studies have provided no support for this myth.
The University of Athens study noted above (2)
examined the effect of dishwashing, brushing with a detergent,
sterilizing with boiling water and temperature on migration of
bisphenol A from polycarbonate baby bottles. With the
well-known exception of temperature, these experiments found no
effect from any of the other parameters on release of bisphenol
A. Migration levels in heated baby bottles were well below
science-based safety standards and, accordingly, the authors
concluded “Our results suggest that BPA migration from
polycarbonate baby bottles is unlikely to be of concern.”
Although small in scale, the University of Cincinnati study noted
above (1)
found no difference between old and new polycarbonate water
bottles. Migration of bisphenol A from old bottles, up to
nine years old, was not different than levels measured from new
bottles.
What Does the New Information Tell Us About Polycarbonate
Bottle Safety?
The conclusions of comprehensive evaluations of the safety of
bisphenol A conducted by independent government and scientific
bodies worldwide have, in every case, supported the safe use of
polycarbonate baby bottles and water bottles. Contrary to
the myths, misinformation and scare stories about the safety of
polycarbonate baby bottles and water bottles, the new studies
described above provide additional strong support for these
conclusions.
For example, the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) recently
established a Tolerable Daily Intake (TDI) for bisphenol A of 50
micrograms/kilogram bodyweight/day, which represents a safe level
for daily exposure over a lifetime.(7)
Even the highest transient level of bisphenol A measured in the
University of Athens and University of Cincinnati studies, which
would not occur daily over a lifetime, would only result in
bisphenol A exposure that is less than 1% of the TDI.
More recently, NSF International, a not-for-profit public health
organization, published their comprehensive evaluation of the
safety of bisphenol A, which concluded with the calculation of a
Reference Dose (i.e., safe exposure level) and a Total Allowable
Concentration (i.e., safe concentration)(8)
for drinking water. Both of these values are applicable to
daily exposure over the course of a lifetime. Very similar
to the EFSA evaluation, even if the highest transient level of
bisphenol A measured in the recent migration studies was
experienced every day, exposure to bisphenol A would still be far
below the Reference Dose and Total Allowable Concentration.
A complete review of the scientific data, as has been conducted by
government and scientific bodies worldwide, reveals that
polycarbonate bottles are safe for use and that migration levels
of bisphenol A from polycarbonate plastic under real-life
conditions are well within science-based safety limits.
(1)
See http://www.bisphenol-a.org/whatsNew/20080131.html
for a full summary and discussion of the new study and scare
story.
(2)
Maragou, N. C., Makri, A, Lampi, E. N., Thomaidis, N. S., and
Koupparis, M. A. 2008. Migration of bisphenol A from polycarbonate
baby bottles under real use conditions. Food Additives and
Contaminants. 25(3):373-383. Available on-line at
http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/02652030701509998
(3)
Ehlert, K. A., Beumer, C. W. E., and Groot, M. C. E. 2008.
Migration study of bisphenol A into water from polycarbonate baby
bottles during microwave heating. Food Additives and Contaminants.
In press.
(4)
Because of uneven heating and the formation of hot spots, experts
do not recommend heating in the bottle to warm infant formula or
milk.
(5)
Koehler, K. E., Voigt, R. C., Thomas, S., Lamb, B., Urban, C.,
Hassold, T., and Hunt, P. A. 2003. When disaster strikes:
rethinking caging materials. Lab Animal. 32(4):24-27.
(6)
Biedermann-Brem, S., Grob, K., and Fjeldal, P. 2007. Available
from the Norwegian Food Safety Authority website at
http://matportalen.no/artikler/2007/11/ taateflasker_av_polykarbonat_er_trygge_i_bruk.
(7)
A summary report and full report are available on the EFSA website
at
http://www.efsa.europa.eu/en/science/afc/afc_opinions/bisphenol_a.html.
A discussion of the EFSA report and other recent evaluations of
bisphenol A is also available at
http://www.bisphenol-a.org/whatsNew/20070201EFSA.html.
(8)
Willhite, C. C., Ball, G. L., and McLellan, C. J. 2008. Derivation
of a bisphenol A oral reference dose (RfD) and drinking-water
equivalent concentration. Journal of Toxicology and Environmental
Health, Part B. 11(2):69-146. Available on-line at
http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/10937400701724303
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