Are Plastic Food Containers Filled With Chemicals?

Many people like to make their lunch in advance and store it in a plastic container to later reheat at work. Are plastic food containers filled with chemicals?

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Plastic Food Containers

How many times have you heated some leftovers in a plastic bowl or container? I know I have plenty of time. I often cook my lunches for the week on Sunday and take food to work to heat up in plastic containers. I did this to save money and believed the containers were safe because they said they were microwave-safe.

I used to buy frozen meals to take to work and heat them in the microwave but stopped doing that because it just got too expensive. A lot of restaurants serve carryout food in plastic containers but are all these containers safe or is there something else going on?

Are There Harmful Chemicals in Plastic Food and Water Containers?

When plastic came along, it became a great way to store leftovers or food to take to work or an event, but is that plastic safe when it's heated?

The short answer is "NO", plastics can be harmful to your health.

According to FOX17, Consumer Reports tested a wide variety of foods for chemicals in plastics and found that phthalates are in almost all foods tested, and bisphenols were found in most of them. 

Phthalates and bisphenols are associated with a variety of health issues, including hormonal and developmental problems. To avoid these problems you need to keep your plastics away from heat. This means no heating of food in plastic containers in the microwave, don't put the containers in the dishwasher, and make sure your food has cooled before storing it in those containers.

I love fast food but you may want to avoid it too because Consumer Reports found that it has the highest amounts of these chemicals in the food and beverages.

Other ways to protect yourself from these chemicals are not to use plastic water bottles, use glass or steel. Prepare your fresh food and don't heat it in plastic containers. Use different cooking tools like silicone or wood spatulas. Looks like I am going to have to make a few changes at my house.