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The Government of Canada led by Conservative Prime Minister Stephen Harper newly re-elected last week, will immediately draft the world's first regulations to prohibit the importation, sale and advertising of plastic baby bottles that contain the chemical bisphenol A.

The government also will take action to limit the amount of bisphenol A that is being released into the environment. Environment Canada scientists have found that bisphenol A is entering the environment through wastewater, washing residues and leachate from landfills.

"Many Canadians, especially mothers of babies and small children in my own constituency of Ottawa West-Nepean, have expressed their concern to me about the risks of bisphenol A in baby bottles," said Environment Minister John Baird. "Today's confirmation of our ban on BPA in baby bottles proves that our government did the right thing in taking action to protect the health and environment for all Canadians."

Bisphenol A is an industrial chemical used to make a hard, clear plastic known as polycarbonate, which is used in many consumer products, including reusable water bottles and baby bottles. Bisphenol A is also found in epoxy resins, which act as a protective lining on the inside of metal food and beverage cans.

Today in Washington, DC, the Natural Resources Defense Council petitioned the U.S. Food and Drug Administration to ban the use of bisphenol A in all food packaging and as a food additive.

If parents and caregivers continue to use polycarbonate baby bottles, the Canadian government recommends that very hot or boiling water not be put into them, as very hot water causes bisphenol A to migrate out of the bottle at a much higher rate than when it is filled with cooler liquids.

Water should be boiled and allowed to cool to lukewarm in a non-polycarbonate container before transferring to baby bottles, health officials warn.

To identify polycarbonate bottles, check to see if the bottom of the bottle has the number 7 in the center of the recycling symbol. Although the number 7 is a broad category, you can only be sure it is polycarbonate if the number 7 also has a PC beside it. If the bottle does not have a recycling symbol, there is no certain means of identifying whether it is made from polycarbonate or not.