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Drinking from BPA-lined cans may increase BP
Consuming food and drinks from cans or plastic bottles coated with bisphenol A may cause increases in blood pressure, according to research published in Hypertension.
Researchers in South Korea demonstrated that concentrations of bisphenol A (BPA) in urine were higher in participants who drank from cans lined with material containing the chemical vs. from glass bottles.
“Considering that the use of epoxy resin for inner coating of canned food and BPA exposure from consumption of canned food are almost ubiquitous, the consequent increase of [BP] poses a substantial public health risk,” the researchers wrote. “More stringent measures should be considered to prevent exposure to BPA.”
Sanghyuk Bae, MD, PhD, and Yun-Chul Hong, MD, PhD, both of Seoul National University College of Medicine, recruited 56 women and four men aged at least 60 years from a local community center for a randomized crossover trial to determine whether increased BPA exposure affected BP and heart rate variability.
During three separate visits, participants (27 with hypertension, nine with diabetes) consumed soy milk from either two glass bottles, two cans or one can and one glass bottle at a time; the drinking sequence was randomized.
The investigators measured individuals’ urinary BPA concentration, BP and heart rate variability 2 hours after consuming each beverage; paired t test and mixed model were used to compare differences.
Urinary BPA concentrations were >1,600% higher after drinking from cans compared with drinking from glass bottles (16.91 ± 12.55 mg/L vs. 1.13 ± 1.76 mg/L; P<.0001). Systolic BP, adjusted for daily variance, rose approximately 4.5 mm Hg after consuming two canned beverages vs. two glass-bottled beverages (P=.02). Differences in heart rate variability parameters were not statistically significant.
“A 5 mm Hg increase in systolic [BP] by drinking two canned beverages may cause clinically significant problems, particularly in patients with heart disease or hypertension,” Hong said in a press release. “A 20 mm Hg increase in systolic [BP] doubles the risk of cardiovascular disease.”
Disclosure: This study was supported by a grant from the Korean Health Technology R&D Project, Ministry of Health and Welfare, Republic of Korea.
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Bae S. Hypertension. 2014;doi:10.1161/HYPERTENSIONAHA.114.04261.