Attention! Class is about to begin.
Let’s get started with today’s lesson in healthy living. Operation Take Back Your Health is now underway:
Step 1: Walk to your kitchen pantry and open the door.
Step 2: Remove all canned foods especially canned soup. Yes, even the organic ones.
Step 3: Throw them in the trash.
Yes, the trash. That’s where they belong. Don’t give them away as this is simply passing on the curse of ill health to another unsuspecting soul.
Step 4: Do your very best to never, EVER buy anything in a can again.
Well done. Class dismissed.
Canned Soup Risks Toxic Chemical Exposure
If you’ve been a reader of this blog for any length of time, you know that canned food is something that is very much a detriment to your health. The reason is not just because the food is nutritionless due to the high temperatures and pressures required during processing.
Possibly the most worrisome problem of all is that almost all brands of canned food, except for a very few organic ones, contain the endocrine disruptor bisphenol A. This chemical, better known as BPA, is part of the can lining. It is a byproduct of the chemicals used to prevent corrosion. Those that don’t contain BPA contain a very similar chemical known as BPS, which is just as dangerous!
Why are BPA and BPS such a HUGE, HUGE problem, particularly for our children?
Because they are linked to massive hormone disruption with the serious problem of early puberty, ADHD, obesity, Type 2 diabetes, and the list goes on and on and on.
Think this problem is overblown? Consider this.
Currently, as many as 10 in 100 white girls, 15 in 100 Hispanic girls, and 25 in 100 African American girls are experiencing breast development as early as 7 years old! The earlier a girl goes into puberty, the higher her chances of breast cancer later in life.
Canned Foods Much Worse Than Previously Thought
Now comes the news that the BPA in canned foods raises urine levels of this dangerous chemical much more than previously believed.
In a study published yesterday in the Journal of the American Medical Association, participants who ate canned soup every day for only five days had urine levels of BPA that were 1,221% higher than those who instead ate soup made with fresh ingredients and homemade broth.
Karin Michels, an associate professor of epidemiology at Harvard University and leader of the study, said, “To see an increase of this magnitude was quite surprising.”
Michels added, “We are concerned about the influence of [hormone-disrupting] chemicals on health in general, and BPA is one of them.”
The study included 75 people whose average age was 27. Progresso was the only brand of soup that was tested. This is the first study to actually measure the BPA levels in urine using randomized participants eating food that was either canned or fresh.
BPA in Mom’s Urine Risks Health Problems for Unborn Children
Study researcher Jenny Carwile, a doctoral student at Harvard made the following observation.
We’ve known for a while that drinking beverages that have been stored in certain hard plastics can increase the amount of BPA in your body. This study suggests that canned foods may be an even greater concern, especially given their wide use.
A number of studies have linked BPA with a host of health problem. In 2008, a study of 1,455 participants showed that higher urine levels of BPA were linked with higher cardiovascular disease, diabetes, and abnormal liver enzymes even when factors such as smoking and age were taken into account.
Other studies have shown a correlation between BPA in a pregnant woman’s urine and resultant health problems in her child.
How much more evidence is needed? Wise shoppers who are truly concerned about the health and the potential for estrogen dominance from exposure to BPA will consistently bypass all canned foods on their trips to the supermarket or the health food store!
Have no idea how to make fresh soup? Relearn this traditional culinary wisdom by learning how to make homemade stock and bone broths as an important first step.
Not anymore. When I was a little girl, my mom used to make Campbells Bean with Bacon Soup when I was ill. Now when I’m sick, I will sometimes pick up a can because I miss her and having it makes me feel like she’s closer. 🙂 Other than that, never.
Thankfully we haven’t eaten canned soups in a long time (this whole year!) I also make my own broth now. But I used to feed my kids the Campbell’s Dora shaped noodles (right out of the can!) once a week. My gosh when I look back at our my family’s “old” eating habits I am filled with guilt!
ok.. just did a search.. have to admit, i had no idea the lids had bpa in them..
http://www.reusablecanninglids.com/ tattler is the brand name and they are bpa free lids.. they say that the lids will last a lifetime and if you ever wear them out, they will replace them for free.. so…. lisa and i will be switching over our lids now.. thanks again sarah for another great post…also guys, follow whats going on at organic pastures.. i just talked to kaleigh (brand PR) and she says that they have already gotten their test results back and everything came back negative however, the FDA has to run their own tests and it will probably be early next week before they get the results.. lets not forget morningland dairy where there was no sickness or contamination of any kind yet the FDA shut them down anyway because morningland challenged them.. organic pastures is a huge company and picking them off would be a major blow to the fresh milk and real food movement.. http://www.organicpastures.com
-jason and lisa-
Sarah – do you know of any broth brands that are ok for occasional use? I have seen great results with my homemade broth and when I travel on business I would like to find some to heat up in the hotel.
My googling has found me nothing
I know there are a few companies that sell homemade broth that is frozen. You would likely have to mail order .. I’ve never seen them in stores. Check the WAPF Shopping Guide – that is the greatest resource imaginable.
So the cans are worse than the plastic bottles!
So the cans are worse than the plastic bottles!
Thank you! The levels of salt are always eye-popping in canned soups, but didn’t know this. Wow.
My father from-scratch cooked most of our meals so my exposure to canned crap (yes that is what we call it) was limited. As I got older it was easy to cook because all I really knew was fresh foods. After I got married and had a kiddo it became harder to resist canned stuff. But after I discovered thaty hubby doesn’t like soup and my son only eats homemade foods cause that is all he really had between me and my father’s cooking. I gave up on trying the easy way out. Now we just have a few jars of pasta sauce and occasionally some tuna. Though I do keep a small stash of canned crap with my emergency food stash just in case. Then I found out how much sodium is in those and how crappy they really are and was appalled. I am so glad none in my family cares much for it!
Thank you! The levels of salt are always eye-popping in canned soups, but didn’t know this. Wow.
i think ive read everything on this post and havent seen anything about home canning.. we home can (glass jars) our veggies and try to keep several months worth in the pantry.. all fresh organic, quality salted and the jar just seals itself.. we just treat it like a normal can and dump it out and add lots of butter and warm on the stove or something.. either way, is home canning and lactofermenting your own veggies and pickles ok to do as long as its in a glass jar??
avoiding tofurkey for thanksgiving,
-jason and lisa-
Home canning in glass is fine. . Just be sure to get the BPA free lids. If you do a search on canned foods at the top of the blog, click on the organic canned foods loaded with BPA post and scan the commments on where to buy them.
If you can’t find the BPA free lids, you can still use them if you place a piece of natural parchment paper over the top of the jar first. It’s not ideal, but it’s better than nothing.
Eating Canned Soup Risks Major Health Problems – The Healthy Home Economist http://t.co/6mWj3crs