Teflon (PTFE) is a widely used synthetic material to coat cooking utensils to make them non-stick. The U.S.


Environmental Protection Agency EPA is urging a ban on Teflon after an independent scientific review panel advising the EPA found that perfluorooctanoic acid or PFOA, a chemical used in making Teflon, is a carcinogen and dangerous to human health.

Scientists have found chemical PFOA (also known as C8), in water, food and air in most places. When it gets into the body, it stays there for a very long time and causes health damage.


PFOA can be found in the bodies of most humans.

PFOA (from Teflon) has been found to cause various problems in animals (1) such as:

• Death of several rat pups that were exposed to PFOA.
• Serious changes caused by toxicity in organs including the brain, prostate, liver, kidneys and thymus.
• Changes in the pituitary in female rats, at all doses, which are considered an indication of toxicity.
• An association with tumors in at least four different organs.

A scientific study has found a 3 fold increase in prostate cancer in PFOA plant workers (2).  

A Danish study has found that high levels of PFOA; the main chemical in Teflon, in the blood of a mother has an adverse effect on the weight, length, organ and skeletal development of the baby (3).

Latest research has found that PFOA impairs the fertility of women (4).

Teflon is a brand name for PTFE or polytetrafluoroethylene. Besides non-stick cookware, it has been added to many household and personal care products:

• Pizza boxes, microwave popcorn, and other non-stick food wraps
• Clothing (Gore-Tex jackets and other clothing)
• Nail polish removers
• Eyeglasses
• Carpet and furniture treatments designed to repel soil, grease and water
• Protective sprays for clothing, leather and shoes
• Paint
• Cleaning products

The problem with Teflon coating is that when non-stick utensils are heated at high temperatures, toxic fumes are released.  It has been found that the coating begins to break down and release toxins into the air at a temperature of only 446 degrees Fahrenheit (230 deg Celsius). In a demonstration on the famous U.S. TV program 20/20, the EPA people showed that a Teflon coated pan went above 500 degrees Fahrenheit in just a few minutes of cooking. According to EPA, these toxic fumes can make a person sick with a temporary flu and give headaches, chills, backache and temperature between 100 and 104 degrees.

Steel, Ceramic or Glass cookware provide a safer alternative over the non-stick utensils which generally have Teflon (PTFE) coatings.  

It is also better to avoid candy bars, French fries, pizza, and microwave popcorn where Teflon coated food wraps are commonly used.

 

Wishing you Health, Wealth, Love and Happiness,
Pankaj Kotak

 

REFERENCES

1.    Abbott BD., et al. Perfluorooctanoic acid induced developmental toxicity in the mouse is dependent on expression of peroxisome proliferator activated receptor-alpha. Toxicological Sciences. August 2007;98(2):571-81.

2.    Gilliland FD., et al. Mortality among employees of a perfluorooctanoic acid production plant. Journal of Occupational Medicine. September 1993;35(9):950-4.

3.    Fei C., et al. Fetal growth indicators and perfluorinated chemicals: a study in the Danish National Birth Cohort.  American Journal of Epidemiology. July 2008;168(1):66-72.

4.    Potera C. REPRODUCTIVE TOXICOLOGY: Study Associates PFOS and PFOA with Impaired Fertility. Environmental Health Perspectives. April 2009;117(4):A148.