If it seems like more of your patients are allergic to, or intolerant of, more and different kinds of foods than ever before, there might be a reason why. A new research published in November 2014 issue of The FASEB Journal, scientists show, for the first time, that there is a link between perinatal exposure to Bisphenol A (BPA) at low doses and the risk to develop food intolerance in later life. The research shows that exposure to Bisphenol A at a dose significantly below the current FDA Tolerable Daily Intake predisposes offspring to food intolerance at adulthood.

“We may look back one day and see BPA exposure as one of the more important public health problems of our time,” said Gerald Weissmann, M.D., Editor-in-Chief of The FASEB Journal. “We know that too much exposure is bad, but exactly how much exposure is too much is still up for debate. “This research involving rats suggests that early life exposure at a dose significantly below the current human safety limit set by the FDA affects developing immune systems, predisposing offspring to food intolerance in adulthood.

BPA Food Packaging Linked to Food Allergies
It isn’t your imagination that more of your patients present food allergies or intolerances. The reason why is embedded in the linings of common food and beverage packaging. This study shows prenatal exposure to the food contaminant bisphenol A (BPA), in doses lower than FDA guidelines, is a risk factor in development of food allergy and food intolerances later in life.

Key Findings:

1. The naive immune system of neonate is vulnerable to low doses of BPA that trigger food intolerance later in life.

2. In animals perinatally exposed to BPA, feeding with a new food protein (ovalbumin) induced an exacerbated immune response toward ovalbumin, which was not observed in control rats.

3. Repeated oral administration of ovalbumin in the BPA-exposed rats induced colonic inflammation, suggestive of food intolerance, not observed in control animals.