Soft Drinks may contain Benzene

[ghchealth]

Just when we thought we’d heard all of the reasons to stop the sale of soft drinks in school, we discovered another outrageous fact.

Recent tests conducted by scientists at the U.S. Food and Drug Administration and elsewhere have found that some soft drinks are contaminated with the toxic chemical benzene at levels that are above the U.S. legal limit for drinking water.

"Now, in addition to the calories, parents and educators should be aware that some of the drinks they give children contain poison," explained Dr. David Katz, director of the Yale Prevention Research Center. "Here we've got a genuinely worrisome reason to focus on soda in schools."

Long-term exposure to benzene is associated with leukemia, aplastic anemia and other blood diseases. According to a U.S. Environmental Protection Agency factsheet, exposure even “for relatively short periods of time” above the EPA limits for benzene in drinking water can “potentially cause” effects such as “temporary nervous system disorders, immune system depression, [and] anemia.”

Benzene is formed by a reaction of two soft drink ingredients -- ascorbic acid (vitamin C) and either sodium or potassium benzoate (which are used as preservatives). Here is a list of some soft drinks that contain both ingredients.

While we continue our campaign to end the sale of all sweetened drinks and other junk food in schools because they promote obesity and type 2 diabetes, we’re making a special effort to stop the sale of soft drinks that may contain the toxic chemical benzene.

On March 23rd, Commercial Alert and our friends sent letters to all chief state school officers asking them to halt the sale of drinks that may be contaminated with benzene.

We need your help right now. Ask your governor and state legislators to halt the sale of these drinks in schools immediately. Take action now, at:


http://www.democracyinaction.org/dia/organizations/commercialalert/
campaign.jsp?campaign_KEY=3122


Thank you so much for caring about the health of our children.

-- Gary Ruskin, Commercial Alert