Finally, A Safe Sippy Cup
I am so excited to have found a non-leaching, safe sippy cup made by Klean Kanteen , the stainless steel alternative to plastic. Klean Kanteen makes the best stainless steel water bottles. They are odor free and do not taste like metal. We have tried other stainless steel bottles that smell horribly and are lined with epoxy. Plastic/polycarbonate bottles leach bisphenol-A (BPA), a chemical that mimics the hormone estrogen, and can cause chromosomal abnormalities. An article a friend gave me stated that baby bottles are made of the worst kind of plastic, as well as the Nalgene bottles I have used for decades. Any Klean Kanteen bottle can be turned into a sippy cup by buying the adaptor and spouts. Of course the Klean Kanteen sippy cup costs more than plastic versions, but the cost is small when you consider the benefit to your child’s health. Besides, as my daughter said, now my son is the coolest kid in preschool with his shiny Klean Kanteen sippy cup.
Here are a couple links to articles discussing the dangers of plastic food and beverage containers:
Hazards of Hydration (Sierra Club)
Bottle Racket (Grist)
The only drawback to the Klean Kanteen sippy cup is it is made in China. The company states it is “responsibly made in China”, but for a few of my friends boycotting Chinese products, this may be a tough decision. I have pledged to boycott Chinese products due to their human rights violations (especially in regards to Tibet), however I have found it almost impossible to completely avoid Chinese products. Even Melissa and Doug toys are made in China! Since signing the pledge to boycott Chinese products, I have become more aware of where the products I buy are made. On many occassions, I have decided not to buy something because it was made in China; however, the Klean Kanteen sippy cup offers the only alternative to plastic sippy cups I have found. Thus, I decided to violate my pledge by purchasing this safe, sippy cup. For more information on boycotting China, please visit Access to Awareness.
In response to Katherine’s comments. One of the reasons that Epoxy Resins are used is to prevent the various liquids in the container from corroding the container itself. Epoxy resins are used in Soda Pop cans to prevent the soda from eroding the Cans.
I have been using a Kleen Kanteen sippy for my son since Mar 08. Since the plastic tops are an Avent product adapted to the Kanteen, and Avent was one of the big BPA users…..Does the top of the sippy still contain BPA??? It doesn’t say otherwise on the Avent package they come in.
Thanks
I believe they Advent lids are bpa free. You can ask the folks at ZRecs. They’ve done extensive research into bpa free products.
http://zrecs.blogspot.com/2008/02/z-report-on-bpa-in-infant-care-products.html
I checked out the zrecs page and they list Avent as a poor choice for addressing consumers concerns regarding products containing BPA. They are listed as having few or no products that are BPA free. The model number of the spout is SCF147. Here is the page for the toddler spouts that Klean is using.
http://www.consumer.philips.com/consumer/en/us/consumer/cc/_productid_SCF147_82_US_CONSUMER/Magic-Toddler-Spouts–12m–+SCF147&compare=true
(Not sure if my link will be clickable)
If you google that product number and BPA free there are no matches that I can find. Although I have limited knowledge of what kinds of plastic contain BPA (maybe because it is not clear I am not to worry) I also want to be sure.
Thanks
There’s also a stainless steel sippy called the Safe Sippy. I like that one because it comes with handles. I got it at http://www.peppyparents.com/servlet/the-156/toddler-safe-sippy-cup/Detail
If you are looking for Klean Kanteen’s Sippy cup in the UK visit:
http://www.littleacornstomightyoaks.co.uk
Always good to know I’m not alone in all this madness! Thanks for the excellent resources. I work for EWG as an online parent organizer - so please be in touch if I can be of assistance, that’s what I’m here for - and wrote about this BPA-free sippy cup dilemma on Enviroblog a week or so ago: http://www.enviroblog.org/2008/08/the-quest-for-bpafree-sippy-cu.htm.
Please have a look at our site. Our goal to inform people about heathy choices for our enviroment and their bodys.
We are trying to get our School Fundraising to take off by enabling children to promote Enviroment benifiting products and get great money for thier schools.
We have multiple options for Stainless Bottles and new things like the Wrap-n-Mat for a garbage free lunch for the kids.
When the kids fundraise with our products we can give them great info on how much carbon, plastics and chemicals they have diverted from landfill with thier fundraiser.
Let us know what you think. We are a small company and would love an email just to let us know we are on the right track!
Thanks
Corey
http://www.envirobottles.ca