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• Posted February 27, 2025

PFAS "Forever Chemicals" Worthy Of Public Concern, Expert Says

Average people are right to be worried about PFAS “forever chemicals” being found in the food and water supply, an internationally renowned leader in children’s environmental health says.

“We're not overreacting, and we need to take it even more seriously in the form of government action, ultimately,” Dr. Leonardo Trasande, a professor of pediatrics and population health at NYU Grossman School of Medicine in New York City, told HealthDay TV in an exclusive interview.

PFAS (perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances) are a category of thousands of manufactured chemicals that have become an emerging concern to environmental and human health.

PFAS are called “forever chemicals” because they combine carbon and fluorine molecules, one of the strongest chemical bonds possible. This makes PFAS removal and breakdown very difficult.

PFAS compounds have been used in consumer products since the 1940s, including fire extinguishing foam, nonstick cookware and food wrappers, researchers said.

“The nonstick cooking materials that we've used for many years are lined with these PFAS, because we like our eggs to not stick on the proverbial pan,” Trasande said. “And the same is true with oil-and-water-resistant clothing. PFAS have been used to make the coats we wear, particularly for sporting engagements, free of the nuisance of having things get stuck on it.”

Unfortunately, PFAS chemicals have leached their way into humans through their food and water. Nearly every American has some level of PFAS in their blood, and the forever chemicals have been found in public water supplies.

Exposure to PFAS has been linked to a number of serious health concerns, but are particularly dangerous for children.

“Kids are uniquely vulnerable (to PFAS) for many reasons,” Trasande said. “Pound for pound, they eat more food, they breathe in more air and drink more water, and so they have higher exposure."

In addition, “they also have developing organ systems that are susceptible to the consequences of PFAS and other endocrine disrupting chemicals," he said. "But we're all susceptible because we're all exposed.”

Based on the mounting evidence, Trasande hopes the U.S. government will start taking a more active role in regulating PFAS.

The Environmental Protection Agency last year set limits on the levels of six PFAS in public drinking water systems, but more is needed, Trasande said.

“The French have actually gone ahead and proceeded with a full-scale ban on PFAS, and that's based on the same scientific evidence that isn't prompting the same level of action here in the United States,” Trasande said.

“Now, I will say that certain states in the U.S. have taken remarkable steps to get ahead of the federal government and taken steps to limit the use of PFAS in manufacturing,” he added. “That's the biggest way that we're going to get PFAS out of our bodies, out of our lives, and ultimately out of our food.”

In the meantime, Trasande recommends that people take steps to limit their own exposure, including swapping non-stick cookware for cast iron or stainless steel.

“The best approach is to minimize exposure whenever possible,” Trasande said.

“Reducing our plastic footprint is really important not just for the PFAS, but also for other endocrine-disrupting chemicals used in plastic like bisphenol and phthalates,” he said. “Particularly, not machine-dishwashing or microwaving plastic materials, and using glass and stainless steel when it's possible.”

People also can reduce PFAS exposure by increasing air circulation in their homes, he added.

“We know that PFAS and other related chemicals recirculate in dust,” Trasande said. “Opening the window, for example, can accelerate the egress of dust into the outdoor air.”

More information

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has more on PFAS and drinking water.

SOURCE: HealthDay TV, news report, Feb. 27, 2025