I am writting an essay about the harmful compounds in plastic bottles - any sites or ideas?

Question

I am writing a 3000-5000 word arguement essay about plastic bottles. I want to focus on the harm that they are causing to humans, but I also realize that they are harmful to our earth. I want to prove that whether they are baby bottles, plastic disposable bottles or hard plastic bottles, they are harmful because the chemicals in their makeup are seeping into the contents by a number of methods.

I would like ideas and/or sites to support this thesis. I have been searching the web and found lots of good stuff, but I would like some personal thoughts in here too! Also, what are some things that people are going to say in regards to the bottles being safe. I have to present the facts that others will think of, not always agreeing with my point of view.

Since this is an essay for my chemistry class, can someone tell me what is exactally in plastic???

Thanks in advance!

Answer 1

You might find this documentary interesting:

http://www.vbs.tv/video.php?id=148530850...

And check wikipedia for some basic info

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Plastic

Answer 2

If you're talking about the polycarbonate that is used for Nalgene-type bottles, which in lab tests has been shown to leak Bisphenol-A, which can cause an increase in estrogen even among men, and endocrine disrupters and other chemicals leading to cellular damage. Keep in mind that what happens in a lab experiment often has no transference to the outside world, an experiment may involve higher temp than your bottle is likely to see and it's never been proven that a Nalgene bottle does actually leach any measurable amount of these chemicals in the real world.

You could argue that this happens to every product eventually, now they're switching to metal bottles but if they don't have a plastic liner then chemicals can readily leach from the metal into the water and if they have a plastic liner then they're as prone to leaching as a Nalgene bottle The world is not perfect and everything in it is made up of chemicals so the search for a chemical-free existence is idiotic and fruitless. What matters is what level of chemical contamination you'll experience and whether that level or if that chemical is harmful to you. In the case of Nalgene their bottles appear safe even after rigorous testing.

If you use paper cups, is there a wax derivative sprayed inside to prevent water leaking? That's a chemical too. Even glass bottles exhibit some chemical leaching but other than some glass or plastic containers made in China which undergo less rigorous testing, no containers leach chemicals into the contents in a harmful concentration. There's just no way to avoid some chemical contamination in the modern world but it's not in a harmful amount. You could argue that since everything is made of chemicals, that's always been true and at least now the air and water are cleaner than a generation ago (at least in the US).

Like many things, this scare is forcing change even though it is totally unproven. Think back on the many health scares promoted and you'll see that they were either totally unfounded or exaggerated. Alar in apples, radon in the ground, cyclamates in soda pop, killer bees from Africa, the list is very long. The greatest danger we face is human gullibility, not the chemicals in plastic containers.