WARNING: Plastic buckets are not safe

[Psych]

OP just made you guys waste your time browsing medical journals and studies.

OP wins?

 

[m_stodd]

OP just made you guys waste your time browsing medical journals and studies.

OP wins?

Jokes on him, my time is worthless.

I just made myself sad

 

[MalFet]

OP just made you guys waste your time browsing medical journals and studies.

OP wins?

You come to this forum to *not* waste time? If so, I think yer doing it wrong.

 

[zbouri]

"We used a roboticized MCF-7 cell proliferation assay... to quantify the EA of chemicals leached into saline or ethanol extracts of many types of commercially available plastic materials, some exposed to common-use stresses...

Results: Almost all commercially available plastic products we sampled—independent of the type of resin, product, or retail source—leached chemicals having reliably detectable EA" (EA means Estrogenic Activity)

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3222987/

Yes I realize that this one doesn't specifically mention 'food-grade'. This is not the original article, its just the first one I found. I read the original a year ago. I'm sorry, I am too hungry and I must get ready for work. If you want to call me a troll, fine.

Am I being too paranoid? My friend who works as a birth assistant has seen a huge increase in birth defects, attributed by the doctors at her hospital to endocrine disruptors in our environment.

So yeah, I'm a little concerned.

It is quite possible that dangerous compounds dissolve into our beer. Its also possible they don't. Personally, I choose to err on the side of caution, and I respectfully suggest that you do so as well.

 

[atom]

i was going to switch to glass but my aluminum pot gave me alzheimer's.

 

[GrogNerd]

I saw Endocrine Disruptors open for The Pus-Ridden Anal Sores at a local dive pub

they're obscure, you probably never have heard of them

except doctors are blaming them for causing 3-eyed babies

 

[Enf0rc3r]

Two kids and a vasectomy. Not worried

 

[the_trout]

vasectomies rule! :rockin:

 

[Enf0rc3r]

vasectomies rule! :rockin:

It's like a new toy. Hahaha

 

[kh54s10]

I tried to read the study. Way to technical for me. I am still not worried. If I suddenly grow double D's I will then get rid of all my plastics.

 

[jethro55]

" My friend who works as a birth assistant has seen a huge increase in birth defects, attributed by the doctors at her hospital to endocrine disruptors."

Ok list them one by one. We'll review the myriad of possible reasons and try to isolate one of them.

 

[EO74]

HA.....this hole time I thought my man ****s were from my homebrew??

 

[Gixxer]

This could be the ticket to a new super useful tool to be sold in all LBHS's around the globe... HOMEBREWER BRAS!! Think about it... NASCAR type emblems, football teams, camo!!

 

[Doog_Si_Reeb]

I tried to read the study. Way to technical for me. I am still not worried. If I suddenly grow double D's I will then get rid of all my plastics.

I would probably stop brewing if that happened to me, but that's because I wouldn't have time to brew anymore....

In the meantime, I'll stick with my Better Bottles.

 

[vtchuck]

I don't think its going to be the stuff leaching from the buckets that kills me....

more likely the alcohol or a speeding bus

 

[bdh]

"We used a roboticized MCF-7 cell proliferation assay... to quantify the EA of chemicals leached into saline or ethanol extracts of many types of commercially available plastic materials, some exposed to common-use stresses...

Results: Almost all commercially available plastic products we sampled—independent of the type of resin, product, or retail source—leached chemicals having reliably detectable EA" (EA means Estrogenic Activity)

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3222987/

Yes I realize that this one doesn't specifically mention 'food-grade'. This is not the original article, its just the first one I found. I read the original a year ago. I'm sorry, I am too hungry and I must get ready for work. If you want to call me a troll, fine.

Am I being too paranoid? My friend who works as a birth assistant has seen a huge increase in birth defects, attributed by the doctors at her hospital to endocrine disruptors in our environment.

So yeah, I'm a little concerned.

It is quite possible that dangerous compounds dissolve into our beer. Its also possible they don't. Personally, I choose to err on the side of caution, and I respectfully suggest that you do so as well.

This study would be a bit more convincing if 4 out of the 5 authors didn't work for either:

1) CertiChem (http://www.certichem.com/) - a company that wants to sell you assay kits to detect endocrine disruptors.

2) PlastiPure (http://plastipure.com/) - a company that wants to sell you plastics guaranteed to be free of endocrine distruptors.

 

[jethro55]

This study would be a bit more convincing if 4 out of the 5 authors didn't work for either:

1) CertiChem (http://www.certichem.com/) - a company that wants to sell you assay kits to detect endocrine disruptors.

2) PlastiPure (http://plastipure.com/) - a company that wants to sell you plastics guaranteed to be free of endocrine distruptors.

If we listed every product on the grocery shelves that was packaged in plastic we would have a long list, indeed. Let's see, every pop known to man, and almost every other item.

I am really mad that no one ever checked its safety before today. But I will listen to facts that can be completely isolated from other factors.

I am just glad that my wife likes homebrew. This is encouraging.

 

[Shooter]

My endocrine doesn't feel disrupted?

God, mine does!! You are SO lucky!

 

[winterc]

If it's food grade HDPE brew buckets which are easier on my back, or glass carboys which are much heavier and more inclined to break, I'll stick with HDPE buckets. It's not like I'm ever going to give birth. Since I started home brewing I've noticed a far more significant affect on my waist line than I have my upper body.

 

[CatHead]

I was wondering why I watch Steel Magnolias twice a week since I started homenrewing. I promise if I start watching The View I will start brewing in glass.

 

[IffyG]

This study would be a bit more convincing if 4 out of the 5 authors didn't work for either:

1) CertiChem (http://www.certichem.com/) - a company that wants to sell you assay kits to detect endocrine disruptors.

2) PlastiPure (http://plastipure.com/) - a company that wants to sell you plastics guaranteed to be free of endocrine distruptors.

I completely agree. The first thing I look at when I read any primary literature is the conflict of interest statement. I'm more inclined to believe the findings if the authors do not have a financial interest in the research.

In addition I also found this statement in the paper:

We recognize that we quantitatively measured EA relative to E2 (EC50 or %RME2) using sensitive assay and extraction protocols. Furthermore, it is almost impossible to gauge how much EA anyone is exposed to, given such unknowns as the number of chemicals having EA, their relative EA, their release rate under different conditions, and their metabolic degradation products or half-lives in vivo. In addition, the appropriate levels of EA in males versus females at different life stages are currently unknown.

Translation: They found something in the laboratory with little idea of it's relevance to human health other than fear mongering (and pushing their assay).

I read through the paper and had many issues with the methodology. Rather than plow through my issues, I'll just link one of the responses to the paper.
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3230411/

The highlights:

1) Thus, sensitive in vitro detection may not portend estrogenic effects amid the endogenous and dietary hormonal milieu.
2) Although food typically contacts only the inside surface of containers, Yang et al. extracted materials from 4-mm squares of cut plastic, exposing the inside, outside, and cut surfaces to the extraction medium. Substances may leach into food from the exposed surface of a plastic container but do not typically migrate through the plastic layer
3) They relied on a very limited in vitro screen to model a very complex system, and those reviewing the study should be aware of the limitations of the approach and the interpretation of such data.

 

[funkadelicturkey]

Endocrine disruption commencing...meow.

 

[m_c_zero]

I have a compulsive disorder to eat plastics, should I be worried?

 

[thadius856]

This one feels strangely familiar.

"Don't eat paint chips."

"Don't eat chunks of plastic."

Any baby boomers (left) out there notice a striking parallelism?

 

[CatHead]

Endocrine disruption commencing...meow.

I'm sorry, I thought you said meow.

 

[ACbrewer]

While not mentioned, I wonder if they zero'd out their test material? Was the EA in it from before?

What isn't well talked about is that much of our water has this in it already and has for 40+ years. So unless they generated distilled salt water, it calls that part into question. I'm not sure about the alcohol.

 

[forstmeister]

I'm sorry, I thought you said meow.

Do I look like I said meow boy?

 

[FermentNEthinG]

Do I look like I said meow boy?

Um...Yes?

 

[Walking_Target]

LOL....

Compressed hop tablets are sold over the counter as 'natural breast enlargement' tablets.

Seriously, no jokes...

so why am I worried about the absolutely tiny *potential* amounts of these compounds leeching from a food grade pail, when I'm purposefully soaking my bucket in upwards of 4oz of hops per batch?

 

[rockbasementbeer]

I'm not too worried. Look in your cupboards and refrigerator. How much plastic do you see?

This was my first thought too!