inhabit on land as it is, from clothing to cosmetics. But because
one of the themes of this book is that not only are you what you
eat, but you are what you eat eats too, it’s fair to say that if you
don’t want plastic in your body, you probably don’t want plastic
in your food’s body either.
Consuming too much. The faster we ingest a large volume of sugar,
the worse the effects on our blood sugar levels. So even though
we can’t blame plastic entirely, the fact that most straws are
made out of plastic implicates the material as aiding and abet-
ting some nasty effects on our waistlines and bloodstream:
They can make slurping something super sugary—a Big Gulp
of soda, a desserty Frappuccino—spike our blood sugar in
ways that are no good from an insulin perspective, especially
for anyone with diabetes or prediabetes.
BPA. Maybe you don’t live near the ocean, aren’t bothered by
microparticles, or lack the bandwidth to reorganize your hec-
tic week’s worth of household responsibilities that are made
eminently easier thanks to countless disposable plastics. Here
are some more immediate reasons to care: Cancer. Childhood
brain development. Hormone irregularity. High blood pres-
sure. All have been associated with the chemical found not
only lining many canned goods but in many single-use plas-
tics like bottled water: BPA. (Weirdly, the chemical also lines
most store register receipts.) More research is needed across
the board, and the FDA says BPA is safe at the levels cur-
rently found in foods, but numerous academic researchers
have been sounding alarm bells. Unfortunately, most of the
BPA alternatives (BPS or BPF, commonly) appear to pose sim-
ilar negative health risks. This means you should be cautious
with even those plastic products labeled BPA-free. For texture
similar to plastic for items like utensils, plates, cups, bowls,
pouches, and bottles or bottle tops, especially for kids and babyStuff that Comes from Factories 169Conscious Eater_03 PT_4th patches.indd 169 10/23/19 1:35 PM