The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) will hold a public meeting on 16 September 2008 to discuss the safety of bisphenol A (BPA), a chemical found in baby bottles and other plastic products. The FDA meeting will focus on questions raised in a draft report from the National Toxicology Program within the US National Institutes of Health.

The report expresses concern that BPA could cause neural and behavioral problems in fetuses, infants and children. BPA is used in polycarbonate bottles, including baby bottles, water bottles and the lining of cans (including infant formula). It has been the subject of one, two, three, four, five articles in baby gooroo.

If you’d like to voice your concerns, the FDA meeting will be held from 9:00 am to 3:30 pm at the Hilton Washington, Washington DC/Rockville Executive Meeting Center, Plaza Ballroom, 1750 Rockville Pike, Rockville, MD 20852. For more information about the meeting, go to the Federal Register.

One final thought … even if the amount found in bottles and cans is deemed safe, if the chemical has the potential to harm fetuses, infants and young children, what parent would want to risk using it?