“Um… yes I would like a burger with a side of harmful chemicals,” said no one ever.

The modern world's creation of artificial plastic has plagued the environment with harmful chemicals widely affecting everyday lives. No one is safe, even in Grants Pass, Oregon. Plastic has seeped into daily life, infecting food, bodies, and livelihood.

According to the Epoxy Resin Committee--a committee partnered with many sustainability mindset European epoxy manufacturers--BPA, short for bisphenol A, is a harmful chemical mixed with epichlorohydrin to create epoxy resin, a plastic lining found in food containers and water bottles. BPA (and other harmful chemicals such as phthalates) though found everywhere in the environment, are most dangerous when exposed to the human body orally and through the digestive system. This exposure happens when these chemicals seep into human food.

Lots of students and teachers have switched to reusable containers when packing their food. Thirty two out of thirty two students and teachers surveyed reported that they used plastic when storing their food. Sadie Allison, a freshman at Grants Pass High School who packs her own lunch from home says, “I sometimes use plastic bags, but mostly I use glass tupperwares for fruit.” This is great. Packing her own lunch significantly cuts down on trash, but most plastic bags, plates, water bottles, and containers all contain harmful chemicals in them, like BPA (or phthalates). Worse, these chemicals seep from the container into the stored food/liquid, and this leakage of chemicals accelerates when the container is scratched or heated.

However, this is not just an issue at Grants Pass High School. According to the National Institute of Environmental Health Services, a report by the Center for Disease Control “found detectable levels of BPA in 93% of 2,517 urine samples from people six years and older.” Yeah, yikes. 93% of six year olds and above are walking around with life altering chemicals in their bodies.

These chemicals alter fertility, metabolism, the heart, sperm, hormones, and more. BPA especially effects the hormones, imitating them and throwing off the body's balance. Sometimes the brain can be altered due to this hormonal imbalance and, according to the National Center for Biotechnology Information, these alterations in pregnant women can lead the infants inside to grow up with anxiety and depression. I would not wish depression on my worst enemy, let alone a baby developing in the womb.

Some take this information and try to avoid BPA when buying new plastic food containers. Unfortunately, companies have replaced BPA with BPB or BPS, other harmful chemicals that also imitate the body’s hormones. The best way to avoid BPA (and its friends) from leaching into food is to avoid buying any plastic containers. Homemade lunches are wonderful for reducing trash and keeping the environment healthy but they must be done properly to avoid health risks. North Carolina State University lists multiple alternatives to plastic, including glass, silicone, and stainless steel.

Because BPA and other harmful chemicals have intruded into the environment and into packed lunches, students should be wary of buying plastic food containers, never microwave plastic, and try to use other means to transport food to and from work/school/home. It is all about safety and BPA is not safe.