American Academy of Pediatrics

TABLE 1

Summary of Food-Related Uses and Health Concerns for the Compounds Discussed in This Report

Category	Chemical	Food-Related Use	Selected Health Concerns
Indirect food additives	Bisphenols	Polycarbonate plastic containers	Endocrine disruption¹¹^,^–¹⁸
	Bisphenols	Polymeric, epoxy resins in food and beverage cans	Obesogenic activity,¹⁹^,^–²² neurodevelopmental disruption²³^,^–²⁶
	Phthalates	Clear plastic food wrap	Endocrine disruption⁶^,²⁷^,^–²⁹
		Plastic tubing, storage containers used in industrial food production	Obesogenic activity³⁰^,^–³²
		Multiple uses in food manufacturing equipment	Oxidative stress,³³^,³⁴ cardiotoxicity³⁵^,³⁶
	Perfluoroalkyl chemicals (PFCs)	Grease-proof paper and paperboard	Immunosupression,³⁷^,³⁸ endocrine disruption,³⁹^,^–⁴¹ obesogenic activity,⁴² decreased birth wt⁴³
	Perchlorate	Food packaging	Thyroid hormone disruption⁴⁴^,^–⁴⁶
Direct food additives	Nitrates and nitrites	Direct additive as preservative and color enhancer, especially to meats	Carcinogenicity,¹⁰^,⁴⁷^,⁴⁸ thyroid hormone disruption⁴⁹^,⁵⁰
Direct food additives	Nitrates and nitrites

Category	Chemical	Food-Related Use	Selected Health Concerns
Indirect food additives	Bisphenols	Polycarbonate plastic containers	Endocrine disruption¹¹^,^–¹⁸
	Bisphenols	Polymeric, epoxy resins in food and beverage cans	Obesogenic activity,¹⁹^,^–²² neurodevelopmental disruption²³^,^–²⁶
	Phthalates	Clear plastic food wrap	Endocrine disruption⁶^,²⁷^,^–²⁹
		Plastic tubing, storage containers used in industrial food production	Obesogenic activity³⁰^,^–³²
		Multiple uses in food manufacturing equipment	Oxidative stress,³³^,³⁴ cardiotoxicity³⁵^,³⁶
	Perfluoroalkyl chemicals (PFCs)	Grease-proof paper and paperboard	Immunosupression,³⁷^,³⁸ endocrine disruption,³⁹^,^–⁴¹ obesogenic activity,⁴² decreased birth wt⁴³
	Perchlorate	Food packaging	Thyroid hormone disruption⁴⁴^,^–⁴⁶
Direct food additives	Nitrates and nitrites	Direct additive as preservative and color enhancer, especially to meats	Carcinogenicity,¹⁰^,⁴⁷^,⁴⁸ thyroid hormone disruption⁴⁹^,⁵⁰
Direct food additives	Nitrates and nitrites