In other BPA news, to address the “low-dose” issues that have been raised in some quarters, the Harvard Center for Risk Analysis convened a panel of scientific experts to critically review the relevant low-dose BPA studies of reproductive and developmental effects. In 2004, the Harvard Panel “found no consistent affirmative evidence of low-dose BPA effects for any endpoint.”  In 2006, the Gradient Corp. consulting group organized and participated in an expert scientific panel that conducted an updated weight-of-evidence evaluation, looking at articles published since the Harvard review and using the same methodology as the Harvard Panel.

This year, Gradient conducted yet another expert scientific panel review, again using the same methodology as the Harvard Panel, and including literature published through July, 2008. The effort was funded by the Polycarbonate/BPA Global Group and the panel’s report has been published in the peer-reviewed journal, Critical Reviews in Toxicology (Goodman et al., Weight-of-evidence evaluation of reproductive and developmental effects of low doses of bisphenol A, Critical Reviews in Toxicology, 2008). The findings of all three reviews were consistent with one another and with reviews conducted by most government bodies worldwide. As concluded overall, “The weight of evidence does not support the hypothesis that low oral doses of BPA adversely affect human reproductive and developmental health.”