BVO: What Every Parent Should Know
If you’ve read my previous What Every Parent Should Know posts: Fluoride and BPA, you had probably already heard of those substances. But, BVO? You might have never heard of that but you really need to know about it! What is BVO? BVO stands for Brominated Vegetable Oil. Bromine atoms are added to the oil until it achieves the same density as water. The enables the BVO to stay suspended in water and not separate in layers. BVO is used as an emulsifier (a substance that forces two liquids that would not normally combine to combine) in citrus flavored beverages. BVO is in Mountain...
Read MoreBPA: What Every Parent Should Know
You have probably seen the letters BPA on baby products that advertise they are BPA-free. But, what is BPA, are baby products the only things to worry about, and what can we all do to avoid BPA? What is BPA? BPA stands for bisphenol A. It is a synthetic, organic compound created in 1891 by Russian chemist Aleksandr P. Dianin. It is used as an additive to polycarbonate plastics to make them stronger while remaining clear. It is also used to make epoxy resins. BPA is a synthetic estrogen which means it mimics estrogen in the human body and can disrupt normal hormone behavior (making...
Read MoreFluoride: What Every Parent Should Know
When I was in elementary school once a week the school nurse would bring around a tray full of little paper cups filled with pink liquid. She instructed us to take the liquid, swish, and then spit it out. This was a common procedure in schools, like mine, where all of the students had well water. What was it? Fluoride. Even if you have/had city water you might remember the yucky fluoride treatments at the dentist. As a parent, what do I need to know about fluoride? What is Fluoride? Flouride is a naturally occurring anion of the element flourine (an anion is an atom...
Read MoreFollow Me
