National academy

• The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency now believes there is no safe level for two common PFAS – PFOA and PFOS – in drinking water, and it acknowledges that very low concentrations of other PFAS present human health risks.
• The agency issued the first legally enforceable national drinking water standards for five common types of PFAS chemicals, as well as PFAS mixtures, on April 10, 2024.

What exactly are PFAS?

• This is a large group of human-made chemicals – currently estimated to be nearly 15,000 individual chemical compounds – that are used widely in consumer products and industry.
• They can make products resistant to water, grease and stains and protect against fire.

• The short answer is that PFAS are harmful to human health and the environment.
• Some of the very same chemical properties that make PFAS attractive in products also mean these chemicals will persist in the environment for generations.
• The U.S. Geological Survey estimates common types of PFAS are now in at least 45% of the country’s tap water.

What are the health risks from PFAS exposure?

• Research consistently demonstrates that PFAS are associated with a variety of adverse health effects.
• A review by a panel of experts looking at research on PFAS toxicity concluded with a high degree of certainty that PFAS contribute to thyroid disease, elevated cholesterol, liver damage, and kidney and testicular cancer.

• Additionally, current research suggests that babies exposed prenatally are at higher risk of experiencing obesity, early-onset puberty and reduced fertility later in life.
• Collectively, this is a formidable list of diseases and disorders.

Who’s regulating PFAS?

• DuPont called it Teflon, which eventually became a household name for its use on nonstick pans.
• Decades later, in 1998, Scotchgard maker 3M notified the Environmental Protection Agency that a PFAS chemical was showing up in human blood samples.
• At the time, 3M said low levels of the manufactured chemical had been detected in people’s blood as early as the 1970s.
• The Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry has a toxicological profile for PFAS.

How can you reduce your PFAS exposure?

• The best ways to protect yourself and your family from risks associated with PFAS are to educate yourself about potential sources of exposure.
• Products labeled as water- or stain-resistant have a good chance of containing PFAS.
• Strategies for monitoring and reporting PFAS contamination vary by location and PFAS source, so the absence of readily available information does not necessarily mean the region is free of PFAS problems.

Kathryn Crawford receives funding from National Institutes of Health and US Geological Survey.