State attorney general gets deadly BPA out of bottles

I'm happy to announce a big win in the battle against BPA. Six of the largest makers of baby bottles have vowed to stop selling bottles made with the chemical known as Bisphenol A, thanks to one crusading attorney general.

By now, you should be well aware of the evils of BPA. I've warned you about it several times over the last 18 months, cataloging for you the growing list of potential health dangers that have been linked to the stuff (including, most recently, diabetes). Manufacturers have used BPA for more than half a century to make hard, shatterproof plastics.

Unfortunately, BPA can seep into the foods and drinks that are often contained in containers made from these plastics - like baby formula, for example.

Believe it or not, this move by the baby bottle was actually prompted by politicians from Connecticut and New Jersey, who personally wrote to the bottle makers and asked that they cease use of the chemical.

"The evidence seems to clear and emphatic and unequivocal to simply permit this stuff to go into children on a massive scale," said Connecticut Attorney General Richard Blumenthal, adding that "there's no reason for it because substitutes are available."

I'm not usually one to hand out plaudits to politicians. But Attorney General Blumenthal is deserving of a standing ovation. I can appreciate what an uphill struggle he faced.

UK-based Philips Avent, the top seller of plastic baby bottles in the U.S.

Shannon Jenest, a spokesperson for Philps Avent, the top seller of plastic baby bottles, said the company made a "business decision to move out of BPA." Of course it was a business decision! You didn't think they'd do it for the health of the consumers, did you?

The fact is, U.S. consumers like you have been putting tremendous pressure on retailers to stop selling BPA-made bottles, which hits them right where it hurts - right in the bottom line.

"Babies R Us was banning [BPA], Target was going to, CVS was going to, and so the distribution channels were lessening and lessening," Jenest says.

As you might expect, the FDA is still in BPA's corner. And the American Chemistry Council even had the nerve to release a statement of their continued support of the FDA's position that BPA levels are safe.

But thankfully Blumenthal is unfazed. He's now working to rally the support of other state attorneys general throughout the U.S. to ban the use of BPA in the manufacture of infant formula cans. And after that, he wants it out of ALL food and beverage containers.

Lawyer lies about Lyme

Here's a good one: the lawyer for a man accused of shooting a church pastor (DURING a sermon, no less) is arguing that his client is not liable for his actions because he has Lyme disease.

Is it any wonder that people hate lawyers?

Thankfully, there are those out there pointing out that this "defense" is completely absurd. Yale University Lyme disease expert Dr. Eugene Shaprio summed it up succinctly: "Lyme disease doesn't cause people to shoot people," he said.

Lyme disease is contracted by tick bites, and can cause skin rashes and fever. It could even lead to permanent disability from arthritis, heart disease, and even brain disease.

But murder? Please.

Sadly, there is some precedent for this lawyer's laughable, straw-grasping defense. Lyme disease patient advocacy groups have reported aggressive psychiatric symptoms that they call "Lyme Rage."

The National Institutes of Health do allow that Lyme disease can cause some irritation, but there's a big difference between "irritation" and "murder." Hopefully the courts will recognize that.