RE: Bisphenol-A in canned foods and Nickel in stainless steel

[Guest guest]

-

> Guess I'll have to do without canned coconut milk. I'm suprised I

> didn't read about this earlier. I was eating a lot of canned coconut

> milk and some organic canned tomatoes.

Yeah, it's a bummer, particularly since canned is generally the only

way to get decent tomatoes nowadays.

> I was also reading about nickel being able to leach out of stainless

> steel, something which I thought was pretty darn safe. Some experts

> view nickel as being more toxic than mercury...

>

> http://www.springerlink.com/content/t64638657362479h/

>

> Looks like I'm going to be switching over to cast iron and enameled

> cast iron for cooking.

Nickel's very bad news, but I remain skeptical about cast iron because

of the prospect of lots of iron leeching into the food. Enamelware,

however, obviously doesn't share this drawback.

-

[Guest guest]

I like my glass Visions cookware.

http://www.visions-cookware.com/

>

> -

>

> > Guess I'll have to do without canned coconut milk. I'm suprised I

> > didn't read about this earlier. I was eating a lot of canned coconut

> > milk and some organic canned tomatoes.

>

> Yeah, it's a bummer, particularly since canned is generally the only

> way to get decent tomatoes nowadays.

>

> > I was also reading about nickel being able to leach out of stainless

> > steel, something which I thought was pretty darn safe. Some experts

> > view nickel as being more toxic than mercury...

> >

> > http://www.springerlink.com/content/t64638657362479h/

> >

> > Looks like I'm going to be switching over to cast iron and enameled

> > cast iron for cooking.

>

> Nickel's very bad news, but I remain skeptical about cast iron because

> of the prospect of lots of iron leeching into the food. Enamelware,

> however, obviously doesn't share this drawback.

>

> -

>

>

[Guest guest]

>

> Nickel's very bad news, but I remain skeptical about cast iron because

> of the prospect of lots of iron leeching into the food. Enamelware,

> however, obviously doesn't share this drawback.

What is enamel made of? And does it leach into food as well?

I mostly use stainless steel and glass, but am thinking of replacing the

steel with something else.

Suze

[Guest guest]

>

> >

> > Nickel's very bad news, but I remain skeptical about cast iron because

> > of the prospect of lots of iron leeching into the food. Enamelware,

> > however, obviously doesn't share this drawback.

>

> What is enamel made of? And does it leach into food as well?

>

> I mostly use stainless steel and glass, but am thinking of replacing the

> steel with something else.

>

> Suze

>

Enamel should just be powdered glass that they fuse onto the metal at

high temperatures. I don't know exactly what they use to color it

though, but it seems to be one of the safest besides glass itself.

Certainly seems like a better option than steel.

-

[Guest guest]

But haven't they been using SS for a long time in Europe for stock

making? I have read that it depends on the quality of the SS (aka, not

all SS are equal or the same... I think you can use a magnet test or

something to determine how good your SS is).

Or is it possible to find an affordable, large stockpot that is not SS?

[Guest guest]

Suze-

> What is enamel made of? And does it leach into food as well?

As said, enamel is basically powdered glass that's fused onto the

underlying material. It's colored by mixing minerals into the initial

enamel powder and paste such that they're fused into the enamel

coating when the enameled item is fired. Because the basic substance

of the enamel is very hard and non-reactive, it's probably unlikely

that meaningful amounts of additives would leach into food, and I'd

imagine that enamel cookware probably isn't made with any really

dangerous additives, but I suppose it might be worth asking the

manufacturer before buying just to be sure.

-

[Guest guest]

> Guess I'll have to do without canned coconut milk. I'm suprised I

> didn't read about this earlier. I was eating a lot of canned coconut

> milk and some organic canned tomatoes.

I saw recently on MDC where someone confirmed with and Sons that

their Native Forrest coconut milk does not have BPA in the can lining.

Here's a listing of tomato products that do and do not have BPA in their

lining-

http://www.mothering.com/discussions/showpost.php?p=10553761 & postcount=26

KerryAnn

www.cookingTF.com

[Guest guest]

> Enamel should just be powdered glass that they fuse onto the metal at

> high temperatures. I don't know exactly what they use to color it

> though, but it seems to be one of the safest besides glass itself.

> Certainly seems like a better option than steel.

>

Thanks (and ). That sounds much safer than the SS I've been using

for years. I will look for some enameled cast iron then!

Suze

[Guest guest]

>

> > Enamel should just be powdered glass that they fuse onto the metal at

> > high temperatures. I don't know exactly what they use to color it

> > though, but it seems to be one of the safest besides glass itself.

> > Certainly seems like a better option than steel.

> >

>

> Thanks (and ). That sounds much safer than the SS I've been

using

> for years. I will look for some enameled cast iron then!

>

> Suze

>

Suze, you can also get enameled steel (not stainless, just high carbon

steel) that will work if you don't need the heat retaining properties

of cast iron. I found a set of two saucepans, a 5 quart dutch oven,

and a decent sized skillet of enameled steel with lids online at

target.com for only $25.

I already had plenty of cast-iron and I really didn't have the money

to invest in a nice enameled cast iron set so this should work well.

-

[Guest guest]

--- <louisvillewapf@...> wrote:

> But haven't they been using SS for a long time in Europe for stock

> making? I have read that it depends on the quality of the SS (aka, not

> all SS are equal or the same... I think you can use a magnet test or

> something to determine how good your SS is).

>

> Or is it possible to find an affordable, large stockpot that is not SS?

,

I remember reading a while back that you can test how much nickel is

in SS by using a magnet. If the magnet does not stick, the SS has

substantial nickel. IIRC it can have as much as 10-15%.

Found this on a quick search:

http://www.physlink.com/Education/AskExperts/ae546.cfm

[Guest guest]

>

> > Guess I'll have to do without canned coconut milk. I'm suprised I

> > didn't read about this earlier. I was eating a lot of canned coconut

> > milk and some organic canned tomatoes.

>

> I saw recently on MDC where someone confirmed with and Sons that

> their Native Forrest coconut milk does not have BPA in the can lining.

>

> Here's a listing of tomato products that do and do not have BPA in their

> lining-

>

http://www.mothering.com/discussions/showpost.php?p=10553761 & postcount=26

>

> KerryAnn

> www.cookingTF.com

>

I was looking at that list and it still does not make me feel

comfortable eating tomatoes or any canned foods.

For instance it says Trader Joes does not use Bisphenol-A in their

cans, and yet they sell stuff that comes from all over the place in

cans and they just re-label most things.

I know whole foods org. canned tomatoes state " Lined with a water

based enamel " right on the can but I could not find anything about

water based enamels in cans. Even if it does not contain Bisphenol-A

I wouldn't be suprised if something else leaches into the food. With

the temperatures they can foods at and the acidity of tomatoes, it

seems hard to avoid.

I think I am just going to avoid canned foods altogether...they may be

convenient but convenience always seems to have a price.

-

[Guest guest]

> > Guess I'll have to do without canned coconut milk. I'm suprised I

> > didn't read about this earlier. I was eating a lot of canned coconut

> > milk and some organic canned tomatoes.. . .

---> doesnt this only apply to cans with the white lining or do they

all have it and you just cant tell?

> Nickel's very bad news, but I remain skeptical about cast iron

because

> of the prospect of lots of iron leeching into the food. Enamelware,

> however, obviously doesn't share this drawback.

----> has anyone ever heard of lead being in the enamel paint? mine are

made by copco and made in china.

jill

[Guest guest]

also most stainless steel pots have encapsuled bases. this usually

conatins aluminum and who knows what else.

jill

>

> > Enamel should just be powdered glass that they fuse onto the

metal at

> > high temperatures. I don't know exactly what they use to color it

> > though, but it seems to be one of the safest besides glass itself.

> > Certainly seems like a better option than steel.

> >

>

> Thanks (and ). That sounds much safer than the SS I've

been using

> for years. I will look for some enameled cast iron then!

>

> Suze

>

[Guest guest]

> > > Guess I'll have to do without canned coconut milk. I'm suprised I

> > > didn't read about this earlier. I was eating a lot of canned coconut

> > > milk and some organic canned tomatoes.. . .

>

> ---> doesnt this only apply to cans with the white lining or do they

> all have it and you just cant tell?

This is a very uncertain area in my opinion. All cans are lined with

something. Some are white like you said, some are clear. Some claim

to not have bisphenol-A but they are lined with something and cost is

most certainly an issue when it comes to disposable stuff like cans.

>

> > Nickel's very bad news, but I remain skeptical about cast iron

> because

> > of the prospect of lots of iron leeching into the food. Enamelware,

> > however, obviously doesn't share this drawback.

>

> ----> has anyone ever heard of lead being in the enamel paint? mine are

> made by copco and made in china.

> jill

I would feel safe if I was you with the copco. The only problem I

heard with lead was with enamel paints they use on ceramics in the old

days, which is completely different.

Enamel did use to have cadmium in the red paint in the old days, but

it was never legally imported into the usa (this was like the 1970's).

Some slow cookers do contain lead in the glaze but its in very small

amounts...but enameled cookware is a different process than enamel

glazed ceramic.

-

[Guest guest]

Jill-

> also most stainless steel pots have encapsuled bases. this usually

> conatins aluminum and who knows what else.

Yeah, but it's highly unlikely that the aluminum (or whatever) core

will ever be exposed unless maybe the cookware is incredibly cheap and

the stainless steel layer is very, very thin. The core is there to

improve the pot's or pan's heat transference properties, as stainless

steel is actually pretty poor in that regard.

-

[Guest guest]

> Some slow cookers do contain lead in the glaze but its in very small

> amounts...

Oh good grief! If it's not one thing it's another :-( I recently bought a

used slow cooker at Goodwill to make stew for my old dog (which he gets

daily). How can one know if there's lead in the glaze of any particular

cooker? Or is that not possible, to your knowledge?

Suze

[Guest guest]

>

> > Some slow cookers do contain lead in the glaze but its in very small

> > amounts...

>

> Oh good grief! If it's not one thing it's another :-( I recently

bought a

> used slow cooker at Goodwill to make stew for my old dog (which he gets

> daily). How can one know if there's lead in the glaze of any particular

> cooker? Or is that not possible, to your knowledge?

>

> Suze

>

I'm not sure if thats possible, unless they are marketed specifically

as lead free.

Its at a level deemed safe by the fda for what its worth...

-

[Guest guest]

I got mine from HSN and when I discovered they were made in China, went

and bought lead test kits. They were negative inside and out. I know

that doesn't guarantee all of them are free of lead. The kits are

cheap, just test yours.

--- In , " jilllliiii " <jillirobins@...>

wrote:

---> has anyone ever heard of lead being in the enamel paint? mine are

made by copco and made in china.

jill

[Guest guest]

Re: lead in crockpot glaze, Rival crockpots all have some lead in

their glaze but they meet the CA limit which is stricter than the US

limit - have no idea as to the impact on health if any. HOWEVER, if

you want to be totally safe, all Hamilton Beach models are lead-free.

Carolee

> Oh good grief! If it's not one thing it's another :-( I recently

bought a

> used slow cooker at Goodwill to make stew for my old dog (which he gets

> daily). How can one know if there's lead in the glaze of any particular

> cooker? Or is that not possible, to your knowledge?

>

> Suze

>

[Guest guest]

Hi,

I have heard that someone contacted Hamilton Beach and the

representative could not say for sure if they were lead-free. I

believe it does state that they are on their web site. Not sure they

can be trusted either.

lisa

--- In , " ccbmamma " <caroleebol@...>

wrote:

>

> Re: lead in crockpot glaze, Rival crockpots all have some lead in

> their glaze but they meet the CA limit which is stricter than the US

> limit - have no idea as to the impact on health if any. HOWEVER, if

> you want to be totally safe, all Hamilton Beach models are lead-free.

>

> Carolee

>

> > Oh good grief! If it's not one thing it's another :-( I recently

> bought a

> > used slow cooker at Goodwill to make stew for my old dog (which he

gets

> > daily). How can one know if there's lead in the glaze of any

particular

> > cooker? Or is that not possible, to your knowledge?

> >

> > Suze

> >

>

[Guest guest]

Thanks so much Carolee! I have a Rival so that answers my question.

Suze

>

> Re: lead in crockpot glaze, Rival crockpots all have some lead in

> their glaze but they meet the CA limit which is stricter than the US

> limit - have no idea as to the impact on health if any. HOWEVER, if

> you want to be totally safe, all Hamilton Beach models are lead-free.

>

[Guest guest]

I used a lead test kit on my Rival Crockpot, and it did not show any

lead. There were positive controls included with the kit.

Mine looks like this:

http://www.amazon.com/Rival-Quart-Smart-Pot-Cooker-White/dp/B0007VW9ZG/ref=sr_1_\

23?ie=UTF8 & s=home-garden & qid=1206584563 & sr=1-23

I did see that there is an increased risk with colored glazes, and the

one from the original Salt Lake City TV Station testing had a green

crock. My mom has one just like that, but she lives an hour away so I

haven't gotten to test it.

Amy

>

> Thanks so much Carolee! I have a Rival so that answers my question.

>

> Suze

>

> >

> > Re: lead in crockpot glaze, Rival crockpots all have some lead in

> > their glaze but they meet the CA limit which is stricter than the US

> > limit - have no idea as to the impact on health if any. HOWEVER, if

> > you want to be totally safe, all Hamilton Beach models are lead-free.

> >

>

[Guest guest]

>

> I used a lead test kit on my Rival Crockpot, and it did not show any

> lead. There were positive controls included with the kit.

>

> Mine looks like this:

>

> http://www.amazon.com/Rival-Quart-Smart-Pot-Cooker-

> White/dp/B0007VW9ZG/ref=sr_1_23?ie=UTF8 & s=home-

> garden & qid=1206584563 & sr=1-23

>

Thanks Amy. Mine looks a lot older than this and the glaze is clear. They

are so cheap I might just get a newer one. This one was 5 bucks from

Goodwill.

Suze