The Food and Drug Administration is encouraging families to limit their children’s exposure to a chemical found in thousands of household products.

CBS News correspondent Kelly Wallace reports that, for years, concerned mothers, environmental groups and some scientists have been warning that Bisphenol A, commonly known as BPA, is unsafe, and can lead to cancers, diabetes and other diseases.

“You may have heard that McNeil Consumer Healthcare (the makers of TYLENOL®) is voluntarily recalling certain lots of Children’s and Infants’ TYLENOL® liquid products that were manufactured between April, 2008 and June, 2008. All products manufactured met internal specifications. However, the company is implementing this recall because during this period, an unused portion of one inactive ingredient did not meet all quality standards. Therefore, as a precautionary measure, it was decided to recall all Children’s and Infants’ TYLENOL® liquid products listed below, which were made during this time.”

Recalled Products – Full List

Furthermore, several scientific panels including the European Union’s Scientific Committee on Food, the National Toxicology Program and the Harvard Center for Risk Analysis have concluded that the weight of scientific evidence does not support the hypothesis that low doses of BPA adversely affects human health. None of the large studies conducted have substantiated the claims made by those performing some of the smaller studies frequently cited. Health Canada and the United States’ National Toxicology Program (NTP) are completing their investigations of the scientific data compiled to date. Both identify “some concern” (NTP, 2008) for “potential health risks” (Health Canada, 2008) relative to neural and behavioral effects in early stages of development, based upon several of the animal studies reported, but have concluded the data are too uncertain at this time to draw any conclusions as to possible effects in humans at early developmental stages. Each will release separate final reports later this year.”

What a strange situation parents are in right now.  On the one hand there are scores of professionals warning us about the dangers of BPA.  And on the flip side planted square against them are scores of professionals telling us it is safe for our children.  As a father I can only tell you my opinion.  That opinion is if the world seems undecided and the issue is the safety of my family I will err on the side of caution.  It is easy to avoid products containing BPA.  You can buy BPA free baby bottles, drink from glass instead of plastic, and just be aware of the resin codes in the plastics you do use.  Sure it may be safe, but why even take the chance?

The floats have been distributed by large chain stores ranging from Target, Toys “R” Us, Wal-Mart, Dollar General, Kmart, Walgreens, Ace Hardware and Bed Bath & Beyond.  They were on the market from 2002 to 2009.  If you think that you own any of these products you need to discontinue use and send them back to the company.  The products come in a verity of shapes and sizes including boats and fish.

Be sure to check back with us for more information on this and other recalls that effect babies and children.

So you would think that with all of the crazy super important decisions that you are called to make while having a baby that buying baby clothes would be a piece of cake, well guess what, it’s not. Buying the wrong baby clothes can potentially stunt your child’s growth, lead to difficult teenage years, and cause diabetes. Now, while none of those things are true it is still an important part of preparing for your child’s  time in this world. As a father I can honestly say that when Ruby (daughter) came into this world I had no idea how the respective sizes of baby clothes worked. It was a sphere of knowledge somewhat akin to women’s shoe sizes, by that I mean that it is different then my sizes, probably important to someone else, and something I don’t care about at all. That being said, I wanted to take a moment to write some tips on buying baby clothes to save you from some of the bumbling mistakes and eventual research I had to do to figure it out for myself.

1. Function is King

There are some pretty awesome outfits out there for your newborn or toddler and many of them are completely ridiculous when it comes to actual utility. I don’t care how awesome that baby biker or cowboy outfit is, if you cannot get in there quickly to defuse whatever diaper bomb is cooking they are not real baby clothes. Look for clothes with a snap-crotch for easy access; you will be glad you did. As for the top half of things weight your choices towards necks that are stretchy and or have buttons to widen the opening. Your baby will love you more for not trying to forcibly squeeze their head through anything more then is necessary, and you want your baby to love you, don’t you?

2. Think Season Appropriate

When purchasing baby clothes before the child’s birth, spare a moment to figure out what the general temperature will be when that kid meets the world and shop accordingly. How would you feel if you went to visit some family in January and you lost your bags, and as chance would have it  also happened to be naked when you got there. It would be pretty great if your hosts had some nice warm clothes for you to wear.

3. Sizes

For most new parents this is where things get a bit weird. Baby clothes sizes are by age, so for example 0-3 months, 1 year, 2 year, etc. Of course, this system is insane, but it is the best that we have come up with so far. I mean can you imagine if we stuck with the baby clothes model of sizing throughout life? Shopping for a size 34 year could be wacky and potentially embarrassing. Anyway, the rule of thumb with baby clothes is to aim for a little big at the start (babies grow) and then once you get to know the baby, assuming you like him or her, and feel like buying them more things, you will know where they fit in relation to the universal age size scale.

And so to sum things up, the best way to buy baby clothes is to use common sense. Think of the weather, remember that babies grow so aim for bigger rather then smaller, and the most important thing is function.

The CSC commissioned an independent laboratory to analyze the contents of 48 products marketing for use by babies for the two cancer-causing chemicals formaldehyde and 1,4-dioxane.  The real concern is not neccessarily that one product may contain small amounts of these dangerous chemicals but that many of them would and the small amounts would add up and potentially lead to illness.  Both of these chemicals are known carcinogens and are associated with a number of health problems.  Many countries have laws restricting the use of these chemicals in care products, the United States is not one of those countries.  Formaldehyde and 1,4-dioxane are not intenionally added to products.  Formaldahyde is a by-product of many commonly used preservatives.  1,4-dioxane is a by-product of chemical processing and can be removed from the product but manufacturers are not required to do so under current law.  Common ingredients likely to be contaminated with 1,4-dioxane include PEG-100 stearate, sodium laureth sulfate, polyethylene and ceteareth-20.

source: The Campaign for Safe Cosmetics

BPA or Bisphenol A is a chemical used in the production of some plastics and has been suspected of being harmful to humans since the 1930’s.  Over time it can leach into the contents of a plastic container, especially containers that have been exposed to heat or strong detergents such as in a microwave or dishwasher.  Some studies have connected BPA to quite a few nasty things including but not limited to reproductive disorders, cancer, heart disease, diabetes, and even obesity.  There is still a debate over whether or not BPS is actually harmful enough to humans to merit being labeled toxic.  However, it should be noted that Walmart stopped selling food containers, water and baby bottles, sippy cups, and pacifiers containing bisphenol A in all of it’s Canadian stores and planned on phasing out the products in US stores during 2009.  Earlier this year chemical giant Sunoco announced that it would be refusing to sell the chemical to any company planning on using it in the production of food and water containers for children younger than 3.  A recent study of note comes for Harvard University and the CDC involving 77 Harvard students showed some startling results.  The joint study showed the students as having a 70% increase in urinary levels of BPA after drinking cold liquid from plastic bottles made with BPA for one week.

If this information makes you want to steer clear of BPA here is how to identify it in plastics.  Look for the small recycling looking symbol with the number in it on the bottom of the container.  This is called the resin identification code and is used to show the family of plastics your container comes from.  Types 3 and 7 are the two that may contain BPA.  The other major source is canned foods that have a plastic lining.

It is scary that we use such risky chemicals in our day to do lives but extremely encouraging that these days such attention is brought to these issues as public awareness seems to be growing all the time.