Are cash register receipts dangerous?

Are cash register receipts dangerous?

Oakland, CA- A new report released today by the national health watchdog Center for Environmental Health (CEH) finds that cash register receipts can expose consumers to toxic chemicals linked to birth defects and other serious reproductive health problems.

Is it safe to burn receipt paper?

Non-recyclable paper. ( For that very reason, they cannot be composted or burned either, because both processes release BPA into the atmosphere — soil or air. Landfills are the safest place for them.

How do you avoid BPA in receipts?

How to Avoid BPA in Receipt Tape

1. Just say no when they ask if you would like a receipt, or go paperless if that is an option.
2. Ask the cashier to put the receipt in the bag.
3. Wash your hands well after handling receipts and, as always, before eating.

Do receipts cause infertility?

Receipts with easily erasable ink contain cancer- and infertility inducing substances, study finds. Ninety per cent of tickets and receipts — those whose ink fades after some time because they are made of ‘thermal paper’ — contain bisphenol A (BPA).

How do I know if my receipt has BPA?

If you need the receipt, fold the receipt with the print/glossy side in and hold it from the backside. The back of the receipt is unlikely coated with BPA and BPS. After handling a receipt, wash your hands thoroughly, especially before eating.

Is it okay to touch receipts?

So the chemicals can easily transfer to anything a receipt touches—your hand, the money in your wallet or even the groceries in your shopping bag. Several studies have found that handling receipts, even briefly, leads to significant BPA or BPS absorption into the body.

Is BPA a receipt?

Recent studies have found that individual thermal receipts from retailers and restaurants can contain a mass of BPA that is 250 to 1,000 times greater than the amount in a can of food.

What is in thermal paper?

The thermal paper consists of base paper and a few special coating layers. On the surface side (the recording side), the precoat layer and the thermal layer are coated.

Is BPA absorbed through the skin?

One study found that the chemical is readily absorbed through the skin, while a second study found that people who routinely touch BPA-laden till receipts have higher than average levels of the chemical in their bodies.

How do you know if your body has BPA?

Our urine test measures your near-term exposure for bisphenol-A (BPA) and phthalates through their metabolites. The levels detected in urine are typically indicative of exposure in the 24-48 hours prior to collecting the sample.

Does BPA stay in your body forever?

A new study indicates that bisphenol A (BPA), a chemical used in plastic bottles and can linings that has been linked to heart disease, diabetes and liver failure, may linger in the body far longer than previously believed.

Are there any toxic chemicals in checkout receipts?

A national effort to protect families from toxic chemicals. A new report by our partners at HealthyStuff.org out today exposes a danger at many checkout counters—toxic receipts. They found toxic bisphenol A (BPA) or its chemical cousin bisphenol S (BPS) in 93% of the receipts tested.

What happens to your body when you use a receipt?

Today, receipts are suspected to be a major source of our exposure to BPA and BPS. That’s why we partnered with Rick Smith and Bruce Lourie, the co-authors of the best-selling book Slow Death by Rubber Duck, to find out what happens to the levels of BPA and BPS in our body after handling receipts.

Is it safe to use BPA free paper receipts?

You should use BPS- and BPA-free paper and offer electronic receipts. This change should be a part of a comprehensive chemical policy to protect employees and customers from toxic chemicals. Here’s an easy action to call on TJX Companies and Meijer to eliminate these chemicals.

Can you opt out of a paper receipt?

By opting out of a paper receipt, you can reduce your exposure, your cashier’s exposure and the amount of BPA and BPS that are manufactured. If you have to take a receipt, fold it printed side in—the back of the paper is usually not coated.