You may have had the question pop into your mind when eating off them. But just as quickly it pops out of your head because you think that it can not possibly be. If it could, then why would they sell it, right? Well, I hope to shed some light on this for you.
What I am talking about here are the risks associated with eating off plastic plates. Are there any? You may or may not know the answer to this question and hopefully this article will shed some light on that for you.
Let us talk about chemicals. Plates made from plastic are generally made from petroleum. The most common form of plastic is polystyrene and this is what is used for plates. There is generally some concern that the chemical process for making them can result in some trace chemicals still being present in the plates after the manufacturing process. These can be harmful if not removed. When I talk about harmful I mean that these trace chemicals are known carcinogens.
It is especially harmful for you when your use of the plastic form of plates is long term. That means eating off them for long periods of time every day. Be sure to use safe brands and not to eat off plastic plates every single day.
Coloring - there are many regulations for introducing chemicals into products that we eat off and with and I am quite sure that plates are no exception to this. As mentioned above however, you do not want to be eating off them each and every day so keep it all to a minimum please.
Flammable - you must be very careful when there are open flames around plastic and this can sometimes leave your mind when you are eating. You can forget that you are eating off plastic. They are highly flammable plates and in burning they will produce some harmful chemicals. See above.
We must all know by now that plastic plates are very good for your hip pocket. They are cheap and economical. They do not break either. So all in all I think that there are many inconclusive arguments to rule either way that they are good or bad but we do know that they are good for your wallet.
The things that you must remember is that ocassional use is ok and should not be permanent. If you remember this, then you should be ok. Look out for any safety and health symbols on the products that you buy.
