According to a startling new report by the Environmental Working Group, high levels of bisphenol-A (BPA)—a chemical that consumer advocates are trying to have banned from food and beverage containers—can be found in an unlikely source: paper receipts.

The environmental organization tested receipts it collected from such common sources as grocery stores, ATMs, “big-box” stores and gas stations.  Fully 40% of the receipts tested contained BPA and, in some cases, levels were as much as 1,000 times those found in the lining of aluminum food and beverage cans.  Receipts from Safeway stores contained the highest levels of the chemical, with one store receipt containing 41 milligrams of BPA—several times over what the EPA considers a safe level for a 155-pound adult to ingest.

For the full story, go to the Washington Post.