EPA

• DENVER, April 10, 2024 /PRNewswire-PRWeb/ -- The American Water Works Association (AWWA) supports strong drinking water standards that protect public health.
• AWWA submitted extensive comments to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency on its proposed PFAS rule and is evaluating the content of the final regulation.
• AWWA remains committed to finding solutions that help its 50,000 members protect their communities from PFAS contamination and assure the highest quality drinking water.
• Established in 1881, the American Water Works Association is the largest nonprofit, scientific and educational association dedicated to managing and treating water, the world's most vital resource.

• Also known as atopic dermatitis, this chronic skin disease affects about 1 in 5 children in the industrialized world.
• Some studies have found rates of eczema in developing nations to be over thirtyfold lower compared with industrialized nations.
• Scientists know that factors such as diets rich in processed foods as well as exposure to specific detergents and chemicals increase the risk of developing eczema.
• Living near factories, major roadways or wildfires increase the risk of developing eczema.

There’s something in the air

• Then we looked at databases from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to see which chemicals were most common in those areas.
• Diisocyanates were first manufactured in the U.S. around 1970 for the production of spandex, nonlatex foam, paint and polyurethane.
• The manufacture of xylene also increased around that time, alongside an increase in the production of polyester and other materials.

• After 1975, when all new cars became outfitted with a new technology that converted exhaust gas to less toxic chemicals, isocyanate and xylene both became components of automobile exhaust.
• How directly exposing mice to these toxins compares to the typical levels of exposure in people is still unclear.

Skin microbiome and pollution

• Every person is coated with millions of microorganisms that live on the skin, collectively referred to as the skin microbiome.
• You’ve probably seen moisturizers and other skin products containing ceramides, a group of lipids that play an important role in protecting the skin.

• To see which toxins could prevent production of the beneficial lipids that prevent eczema, my team and I used skin bacteria as canaries in the coal mine.
• Lysine helps protect the bacteria from the harms of the toxins but doesn’t provide the health benefits of ceramides.
• Bacteria that help keep skin healthy could live on any fabric, but, just as with air pollution, the amount of beneficial lipids they made dropped to less than half the levels made when grown on fabrics like cotton.

Addressing pollution’s effects on skin

• Detectors capable of sensing low levels of isocyanate or xylene could help track pollutants and predict eczema flare-ups across a community.
• Better detectors can also help researchers identify air filtration systems that can scrub these chemicals from the environment.
• In the meantime, improving your microbial balance may require avoiding products that limit the growth of healthy skin bacteria.
• I believe that it may one day allow us to get back to a time when these diseases were uncommon.

Ian Myles receives funding from the Department of Intramural Research at the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases. He is the author of, and receives royalties for, the book GATTACA Has Fallen: How population genetics failed the populace. Although he is the co-discoverer of Roseomonas mucosa RSM2015 for eczema, he has donated the patent to the public and has no current conflict of interest for its sales.

• 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.

• The settlement-delivery of the Offering is expected to occur on March 25, 2024, subject to customary conditions.
• Gross proceeds from the Offering amount to €52 million, and net proceeds amount to approximately €50.2 million.
• 3,939,394 New Shares will be issued, representing c. 19.2% of the Company’s existing share capital before Offering.
• By way of illustration, a shareholder holding 1% of the share capital prior to the Offering and which did not participate in the Offering will hold 0.8% after completion of the Offering.