Your Paper Receipts are Killing You (Literally)

So today we’ll talk about BPA, an organic synthetic compound belonging to the group of diphenylmethane derivatives and bisphenols, with two hydroxyphenyl groups.

Bisphenol-A (BPA) which is present in aluminium cans, food packaging, water bottles, baby bottles, Sippy cups designed for children and a lot more of other things is something we need to be concerned of because of possible health effects of it on the brain, behaviour and prostate gland of fetuses, infants, children and is its linkage to obesity, diabetes, prostate cancer and breast cancer.

BPA exposure through thermally printed paper receipts?

Yes! It’s real!

Making a purchase in our everyday life is a common ritual where you are bound to touch a thermally printed receipt. Being unaware of its side effects, we don’t even end up washing our hands after touching a receipt. We worry about the BPA in plastic and aluminium cans but what about the BPA exposure that comes from thermal receipts?

Thermal paper printing happens in ever nook of our lives - grocery stores, gas stations, shopping, ATMS, parking tickets, movie tickets, etc. Due to its extensive usage, it is impossible to not avoid touching a receipt.

This form of receipt paper is known as ‘thermal paper” because of the way the ink develops, BPAs are added in their free forms without being bound to the paper. Hence the chemicals get transferred to anything the receipt touches. It could be your hand, your money, clothes or even the groceries you’re carrying.

Touching a thermal receipt exposes us to high level of BPA. This powerful chemical can disturb the body’s normal functioning permanently. Studies have found that BPA exposure through thermally printed paper receipts puts us at even greater risk due to the free form nature of the molecule in the paper receipts. Even a low dose of this can cause problems in the long run.

A recent study conducted by the Environmental NGO Toxic Links where they collected thermal paper samples from various markets in Delhi, India along with receipts from products ordered online proved high levels of BPA in the paper receipts samples that they got.

The samples that were analysed through chromatography were found to have BPA concentration between 300ppm (parts per million) and 6,600ppm. This is way past the EU safe standard of 200ppm, the reason for the same might be due to a lack of safe limit set for thermal paper in India and a general lack of awareness in the general public about this compound.

Whats even dangerous is using hand sanitisers or hand creams makes the body absorb BPA even more rapidly. The BPA in plastic bottles is bound whereas the the BPA on receipts is more in its powdery film which makes the chemical easily transferable.

Currently, there is no substitute to the BPA found in the receipts and until then, receipts are going to carry this chemical. This highly toxic BPA not only penetrates into the human skin but also has the high possibility of contaminating the ecosystem.

Minimalising BPA exposure through paper receipts

To start with, if you don’t require a receipt, leave it or ask the cashier for a digital receipt. Retailers should provide customers with an alternative option of digital receipts where there is assurance of zero contact with thermal receipt. This can save the cashier as well as the customer from the harmful chemicals of BPA.

With time and technology, retailers need to move from thermal paper receipts to digital receipts. We live in a world full of digital wallets and cryptocurrencies, why shy away from digital receipts.

Globally companies are drifting to e-receipts realising the harmful effects of BPA. Hopefully with these studies, we as a society can move towards the end of thermally coated paper receipts completely.

Few countries like Japan, Germany, Denmark, Canada and France have already banned the usage of BPA in thermal receipts. Companies in the UK and USA are also opting out for an alternative to BPA based thermal printing.

Why not just move to digital receipts?

Billeasy is here to provide you with digital receipts that are sent directly to your smartphones and are accessible at all time. If we want a sustainable environment, saying no to thermal paper receipts is what we have to start with. With BillEasy’s eco-friendly values you can save tonnes of trees and even steer clear of being exposed to BPA.

Don’t we all want to be non-toxic every time we purchase something?