Are Water Bottles Safe in a Hot Car? Understanding Plastic Safety

Plastic bottles made for bottled beverages, such as water, are safe to store in your car. The plastic used to make the bottles does not release cancer-causing chemicals when exposed to heat.

PET

• Plastic bottles used for water, carbonated drinks and other bottled beverages are made with a chemical called "polyethylene terephthalate," or PET. PET does not produce DHEA, which stands for dehydroepiandrosterone.

DHEA

• DHEA is an endogenous hormone that produces androgens and estrogens in humans. Excess DHEA may increase the risk of hormone-sensitive cancers such as breast, prostate and ovarian cancer.

Study

• A study testing plastic bottles at the University of Idaho created the idea that these bottles were unsafe. The plastic bottles tested were thought to contain a DHEA. In reality, the DHEA came from diethylhydroxylamine, which is a plasticizer that is used in many plastic containers used in laboratories. The student found DHEA in the laboratory's plastic containers and not in the plastic bottles.