The Rawtarian Community
The Rawtarian Community is one of the largest online raw food communities. In addition to this community forum, you can browse and search thousands of community recipes added by over 5000 talented Rawtarian Community members just like you!
Visit The Community
Comments
I think if we use the Vita-Mix container only for cold and raw foods it should not be a problem. If one uses it with boiling hot liquids that could increase potential for contaminants to leach out of the polycarbonate into the food. Excalibur has an article on polycarbonate on their site that may be relevant. “Is Polycarbonate Safe for Use in Dehydration” http://www.excaliburdehydrator.com/article.php
If anyone organizes a letter or email to vitamix suggesting they introduce an alternative, I’d be up for that. Please let me know.
I heard that David Wolfe is working on a blender and that it should be out within the next couple of months. Hopefully he’ll be using glass or stainless.
I too have a vitamix and have been using it for years and was not totally aware how big the problem is. but on a lighter side I think it is like anything else that emmits chemicals and odors when first bought. (such as a cotton fabric couch) even though it is 100percent cotton it has been sprayed with something bad for you. so you cant (unless you dont care) use it right away, Ive been told to keep it in the garage or storage for a given amount of time (whatever it is for that product) and after that time it is safe that all of the hazardous stuff has leached into the environment(not much better) and it is no longer toxic, so I would think that if you put your vitamix on the shelf somewhere out of the way for a long time thet soon it wouldnt be toxic anymore. I think that maybe you could look on e-bay for an old used vitamix container that someone is selling that has lost its toxcisity because it is old.
I dont really know if this is true just looking for a solution.
What do you think or beter know about this?????????
I’m quite sure most of us breath more toxins, and obtain more damage from cell phone use and other radio waves daily than we recieve from our blenders. I don’t obsess about my plastic Waring. I feel so much better from the smoothies, etc. that I prepare with it. Stressing over such things can be much worse than any damage from a quality plastic blender container. For my water bottles I just re-use glass juice bottles. If it breaks I know where to get plenty more for free. I believe a glass blender container is superior over metal, since metal can transfer toxins also. But again, I think eating raw and exercising, along with other healthy lifestyle choices, trump the toxins we take in daily.
Well, i wonder if we can trust David Wolfe’s blender, as he is not exactly an honest person (see the plagiasrism from another book and his book on chocolate, which is not a healthy food at all). Anyway I just wanted to point out the new blender from Vita mix, 9i read about it in “Get Fresh!” magazine at first: the company have had the boldness of making it with polycarbonate! See: http://www.detoxyourworld.com/acatalog/vitaprep…
and: http://www.fresh-network.com/acatalog/vita-prep…
What an interesting topic. I have a Vita-Mi Turbo Blend 4500, and I don’t know what I’m going to do. Shrugs
I have a glass blender container (Hamilton Beach, not as strong as Vita-Mix, but still good for a lot of things), & one thing that has made me hesitant about paying the price for a Vita-Mix is the plastic container. But I also know that for me, stress is a much bigger threat, and once I borrowed my friend’s Vita-Mix, I know I could do a lot with it & my health will be improved! I think I’ll wait & see how I feel about the new one they are making.
The other problem with plastic being used for food is that it is porous, so if you have anything go bad, the bacteria get trapped in the plastic & can make you sick when it contacts some new food/liquid.
One of the things that has always concerned me about heating food in the blender like a Vitamix or a Blendtec is that you are destroying alot of the enzymes when you heat it that much… not to mention ( from someone who has sold over 3 million dollars in this kind of kitchenware) you are getting really hard on the motor, and sometimes things far more toxic than the plastic blender are leaching in thru the blender bottom. I have seen grease and grime come thru if you get the motors going too hot and too long. Obviously the best raw diet ( and I am so limited on my experience with raw foods but very experienced with the machines) I would think is low heat. Less agitation, right? Glass blenders that can take raw foods down to easy digest smooth have a real hard time handling the taxing work it takes. These blenders tend to use unbreakable plastic for a really big reason- because they are very powerful and the pressure going on inside the machine is ALOT of work. I have had people thru my past stores return blenders that they didn’t clean, mixers that looked like the person cooking had their eyes closed when they were washing. This gets to be a big concern to me. With so many altered foods and the need for sustainable nutrition I personally will continue to use my Blendtec or Vitamix ( I have both because I do trainings and such).... but I might also begin to recommend the Waring if I see it as a good option. I have not used one yet so I don’t give opinions on what I have never used.
My husband studies ocean pollutants in whales and works with many scientists who study bio-persistent toxins. His bible for the home is Our Stolen Future by Theo Colburn which is all about plastics. I’m no expert personally, but these are the facts that have stuck with me, especially as a mother: plastic is toxic when it is new and off-gassing (I like the sun idea), it’s dangerous when it’s old and scratched and starting to wear down, it’s dangerous if you heat your food in it, and when you freeze your food in it (this includes water bottles), and if you bleach it. In our house we are most wary of soft plastics, brand new plastics and old plastics. We use glass storage for food and Sigg water bottles. So maybe if the blender has off-gassed and isn’t old and isn’t blended on high to the heating point (that’s the advantage of being raw!) it might not be as bad, but I will look forward to glass too!
http://www.reviewcentre.com/reviews119945.html
Well, I don’t have anything to say that will help you but thanks for helping me with that heads up !
I drink out of glass bottles and jars and stay away from plastics anyways…
I read about the 5200 Vita Mix on this site: well, they speak very well about the steel! I am afraid shaker disagree definitely! What do you think, Shaker?
http://www.costco.com/Browse/Product.aspx?Prodi…|103|28485&N=4009928&Mo=4&No=0&Nr=P_CatalogName:BC&cat=28507&Ns=P_Price|1||P_SignDesc1&lang=en-US&Sp=C
Screw plastic. Warring has been making commercial blenders since my grandmother was my age. They have HUGE vita-mix like blenders with 3.5 HP and steel carafes
http://www.theblenderplace.com/waring-blenders.htm
1.5 HP ones as well http://www.theblenderplace.com/commercial-food-....
Vita-Mix has a history of quality, but the plastic issue makes them simply a non option, and Blendtech is built entirely on marketing and looks. I’ll bet serious blender users (nut butters etc) will burn out a Blendtech in short order… Not to be trusted with my tahini needs ;)
Well, this is a bummer. I just got a Vitamix. Wish I saw this sooner.
OK…. I just checked the FAQ’s on the Vitamix site (as simplyraw suggested last October).... they no longer have plastic containers with BPA (the new 5200 model doesn’t anyway). The new substance is “tritan”(?). Supposedly that is safe? I don’t know for sure, but here’s a link to the ‘tritan’ site… http://www.eastman.com/Company/News_Center/News…
Yes, we noticed the news about the tritan container, but the trouble is with the blades metal, too, and moreover, who knows, perhaps even tha tritan stuff is not safe as well
When blending there is a very thin layer of the liquid on the container wall that does not move much. It is called the boundary layer. Most of the leached out BPA would stay in this layer. When you are done blending and pour the liquid out, this layer again pretty much stays on the container wall. Therefore rinse the container with water to get rid of this layer at this point and dump into the sink the wash which contains BPA. This is probably the best one can do short of a glass container.
Nickel is not bad. Your multi-vitamin pill has nickel in it as one of the essential minerals.
When my vitamix 5000 wears out, I will certainly look into other options. Meanwhile, the toxic metal in my wall paint and my water are concerns FAR above and beyond BPA in vitamix container. I think we all have to do the best we can. I replaced my shower curtain! No more PVC. And I air my rooms regularly to keep the offgassing paint buildup to a minimum. Chlorine in water. Heavy metals in OH so many products. I’m going to relax about this issue, and do as much as I can.
Hi All! I believe your worry about Bisphenol A is over reaction. For the short time your food is in the blender there could be very little leaching. Now water sitting in a bottle for months is a very different story. And when the water is bottled the bottle is new. So most of the material to be leached would be near the surface. That’s why I don’t hink you need to worry much about the Bisphenol A leching in your machine. As for glass containers, they all have their problems too! Much of the glass made over the past several thousands of years is made with some lead content to make it less brittle. Again, if you leave something sitting in it for a very long time, the could be some contamination, but probably mot enough to worry much about. You water comes in through pipes and over equipment that most certainly has far more contaminents than any container will have. And even the ground the water was in contact with has contamients along witht he minerals your bvody requires. As for the Nickle and Stainless Steel. The Nickle in the Steel is what makes it Stainless! As the amount of iron in the steel is reduced the amount of nickle is increased to make it make it corrode less. My opinion is don’t worry quite so much about these concerns. Your body is built to handle all kinds of contaminations. Just make sure you’re getting the best water you and and plenty of it. And do things that make you sweat. Your genes have far more impact on the quality and length of your life than the difference in a plastic or glass container or a steel or stainless blade will ever make. In fact, worring about this stuff will probably kill you ! 99.99% of all the crap we worry about just doesn’t happen. Live long and prosper and don’t worry so much.
ananda: I bought a Cuisinart for about $60 because I could not afford an expensive one. It has a glass container and has worked great for me. It blends up Kale with no problem. It is powerful enough to handle a container of frozen fruit. Others may be more powerful but I blend every day with no problem.
RAWCure – how long have you been using your Cuisinart blender? I bought a Cuisinart Duet food processor and blender combo… it worked great for my nut butters (when I was eating them) and my green smoothies for many months. But it has been less than a year and they are already not working as well as before. My greens are not breaking down as they used to… I think that the more powerful commercial type blenders will hold up over time better.
Since I plan to eat this way for the rest of my life, I need a blender than can last for many many years. This conversation is not one that has helped me make my decision! I guess I’ll have to just keep saving my money and do some more research and decide once I can afford a new commercial strength blender.
If anything I think the metal blades are worse. They aren’t toxic, but when most fruits (especially cacao apparently) come into contact with metal, they lose some of their vitamin content. I actually read this apparently.
I agree this could be an issue, but how is that so if the contents never stay in contact with the plastic for more than a number of seconds? If it’s because our nut butters are heating up, then that’s not even eating raw nevermind toxin-free.
I’m just jumping in here and saw the talk in the beginning about trying to find glass carafes or have them custome made or something to fit the vitamix. I’m wondering if it might be easier/more economical to get a normal blender like an Oster that comes with a glass carafe, and put a more powerful motor (say the one from the vitamix) in it.
I’m thinking it’d be alot easier to find someone who can work with motors than someone who can hand make a custom glass blender carafe…
For those who have a Waring blender. I see they now have a stainless steel carafe.
Hi there,
i am looking for a blender as well at the moment and stumbled across here. What I read so far this seems to be what I read here. Here is a link to an article :
http://www.motherjones.com/environment/2014/03/tritan-certichem-eastman-bpa-free-plastic-safe?page=1
I sent an email to Vitamix and Oster w/o a response yet. I wanted to know if they offer also glass jugs, let's wait and see. Oster does, but strangely only on the cheaper models.
As you mentioned not to worry, I agree on the one hand, but if I want to use the plastic jug for hot soups which wouldn't fit in here of course then I think it makes a difference, but i think it is more about the Nazi practices of the chemicals mentioned in the article which I don't agree. If Tritan is so not harmful as they try to 'say' then why going down that road.
Just went to Waring's website and obviously they sell also copolyester jug which might be the same.
kr
matthias
I'm curious too. Keep us updated on if you get a response, Matti.
If you have concerns about this, you should also take a look at the Excalibur dehydrator and its use of Toxic Polycarbonate (BPA).