Touching thermal-paper receipts could extend BPA retention in the body

When people handle receipts printed on thermal paper containing the endocrine disruptor bisphenol A (BPA), the chemical could linger in the body for a week or more (Environ. Sci. Technol. 2017, DOI: 10.1021/acs.est.7b03093). Jonathan W. Martin of Stockholm University and Jiaying Liu of the University of Alberta asked six male volunteers to handle paper containing isotopically labeled bisphenol A for five minutes. The volunteers then put on nitrile gloves, wore them for two hours, removed them, and washed their hands with soap. Afterward, the researchers measured the labeled bisphenol A and its metabolites in the volunteers’ urine regularly for two days and then once again a week later. Total bisphenol A in the urine increased linearly over the first two days, and after a week, three of the volunteers still had bisphenol A in their urine.

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