Study shows BPA toxins in sports bras, athletic shirts
The Center for Environmental Health sent legal notices to 11 brands manufacturing sports bras and athletic shirts after a study found there may be high levels of bisphenol A (BPA) in the clothing.
AUSTIN (Nexstar) — On Wednesday, the Center for Environmental Health sent legal notices to 11 brands manufacturing sports bras and athletic shirts after a study found there may be high levels of bisphenol A (BPA) in the clothing.
BPA is a chemical used to make plastics and can be used in manufacturing polyester.
Currently, the FDA has received petitions about BPA in clothing products from environmental groups. The groups expressed concerns about BPA in polyester-based clothing containing spandex.
“Sports bras and athletic shirts may be worn for hours at a time, so it is concerning to be finding such high levels of BPA in our clothing,” the CEH press release said.
Although BPA is found in lots of everyday products, it has been linked to a host of health problems like diabetes, heart disease, cancer, and obesity.
The legal notices stated testing results, which could indicate clothing wearers could be exposed to up to 22 times the safe BPA, according to California law standards. The notice asks brands to reformulate their products to remove all bisphenols including BPA and gives the companies 60 days to work with CEH.
A few states have bans or regulations regarding the use of BPA in products, Texas is not one of those states, according to compliancegate.com.
Sports bra brands include:
- All in Motion (Target)
- Athleta
- Asics
- Brooks
- FILA
- Nike
- PINK (Victoria’s Secret)
- The North Face
Activewear shirt brands include:
- Athleta
- Brooks
- Mizuno
- New Balance
- Reebok
- The North Face
Nexstar reached out to the brands involved in the legal notices and has received comments from one so far.
“The safety of our customers is our highest priority. We have stringent testing requirements and high standards for all materials in our products. BPA is a banned substance in the Brooks Restricted Substance List (RSL),” a Brooks representative said. “We have no reason to believe any of our products do not meet any health/safety standards, but out of an abundance of caution, we are working urgently to investigate these claims.”
You can visit their Corporate Responsibility Transparency page which provides additional information about Brooks’ environmental standards and responsible chemicals program.
The CEH hasn't received responses from the the listed companies.