Human exposure to bisphenol A

Bisphenol A (BPA), 2,2-bis(4-hydroxyphenyl)propane, is made by combining acetone and phenol. It has estrogenic activity and is acutely toxic to aquatic organisms. BPA is used mainly as a material for the production of epoxy resins and polycarbonate plastics. Due to an increase in products based on epoxy resins and polycarbonate plastics, human exposure to BPA has increased. The environment (aquatic environment, air and soil) can be one source of human BPA exposure, but the primary route of human exposure is foods. The daily human intake of BPA is < 1 mu g/kg body weight/day on the basis of several studies, and whether these doses can have an adverse endocrine disruptive effect on humans, especially fetuses, needs to be studied carefully. (c) 2006 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.