Emory teacher questions foods' benefits Sep 23, 2008
The Healthy Skeptic: The production of Teflon involves a chemical called perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA), and studies in rodents show that it may cause cancer and birth defects. Virtually all Americans have PFOA in their blood but the levels tend to be extremely low about five parts per billion. (Atlanta Journal-Constitution -- Health)
Calif. Assembly rejects chemical ban in baby items Aug 19, 2008
Elaine Corbett, D-San Leandro, that would have banned perfluorooctanoic acid, or PFOA, a chemical used to keep food from sticking to packaging. The Environmental Protection Agency considers PFOA potentially carcinogenic and says businesses should voluntarily stop using it by 2015 ... While Feuer favors the comprehensive approach in his bill, he urged his Assembly colleagues to pass the immediate chemical bans on bisphenol A and PFOA."Ideally soon we will be out of the business for handling... (Fresno Bee -- State)
Baby bottles, metal theft among targets of California bills Aug 14, 2008
" The American Chemistry Council has been using scare tactics in ads and mailers, implying that the bill would yank food from babies' mouths. The can manufacturers' lobby, represented in Sacramento by Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger's former communications director, Rob Stutzman, advocates allowing the California Environmental Protection Agency to regulate BPA. "Let scientists do the work instead of politicians looking for sexy issues," Stutzman says. Scientists already have done enough work to show... (Los Angeles Times)
Carcinogen worries stick to food packaging Aug 3, 2008
The chemical industry says there's no reason to worry about PFOA. David Lazarus, Consumer Confidential July 30, 2008 ... Studies show that this chemical -- perfluorooctanoic acid, or PFOA -- is present in 98% of Americans' blood and 100% of newborns ... The chemical industry says there's no reason to worry about PFOA, which is used to make Teflon pans, Gore-Tex clothing and to prevent food from sticking to paper packaging. (Yahoo News -- Consumer News)
Professor at UNC and NCSU wins prestigious Lemelson-MIT Prize Jun 25, 2008
The acid, perfluorooctanoic acid (or PFOA), is potentially toxic. DuPont, which has come under fire from U.S. regulators for its use of PFOA, has licensed DeSimone's technology and built a plant in Fayetteville that uses it. (Triangle Business Journal)
Endocrine Disruptors In Common Plastics Linked To Obesity Risk May 16, 2008
In another experiment outlined at the conference, Suzanne Fenton, a research biologist at the US Environmental Protection Agency, found that when the chemical perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA) - a greaseproofing agent used in scores of products from microwave popcorn bags to pizza box liners and other food containers - was given to pregnant mice, their offspring were unusually small at birth then became overweight as adults ... PFOA is detected in the blood of people around the globe, but is... (Science Daily)
Beware of non-stick cookware May 4, 2008
Perfluorooctane-sulfonate (PFOS), used to make stain-resistant fabrics, was found in the highest concentration in breast milk, followed by perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA), used in nonstick cookware. On average, each litre of milk, roughly equivalent to one quart, contained 131 billionths of a gram of PFOS and 44 billionths of a gram of PFOA.. (Hindustan Times)
Suspected Carcinogenic Chemicals Used To Make Teflon, Scotchgard, Found In Human Milk May 2, 2008
Perfluorooctane-sulfonate (PFOS), used to make stain-resistant fabrics, was found in the highest concentration in breast milk, followed by perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA), used in nonstick cookware. On average, each liter of milk, which is roughly equivalent to one quart, contained 131 billionths of a gram of PFOS and 44 billionths of a gram of PFOA. The amount of PFCs that nursing infants would consume each day did not exceed Total Daily Intake Values set by the U.K. Food Standards Agency... (Science Daily)
3M Workers Exposed to PFOA Had Increased Death Rate, Study Shows Mar 9, 2008
Workers who were exposed to a chemical called PFOA (perfluorooctanoic acid) at 3Ms factory in Cottage Grove had very increased rates of developing strokes and cancer and eventually dying compared to other workers at the plant, University of Minnesota researcher Bruce Alexander wrote in a study made last year. PFOA was used in the manufacture of nonstick coatings and other products up until 2002 ... 3M manufactured PFOA from 1947 to 2000 at its Cottage Grove plant. (eFluxMedia)
Study finds higher death rate in 3M workers exposed to chemical Mar 7, 2008
A new study which looked at 3M workers exposed to a chemical called PFOA, or perfluorooctanoic acid, died of stroke and prostate cancer at higher rates than other workers at one of 3M's facility, according to media reports ... PFOA was used in the manufacture of nonstick coatings and other products up until 2000. (Bizjournals.com)
EPD to launch Conasauga water study Feb 22, 2008
A recent study of the Conasauga River near Dalton Utilities turned up alarmingly high levels of PFOA perfluorooctanoic acid ... The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reports that PFOA accumulates in wildlife and can cause organ damage and developmental problems, but its effect on human health is unknown ... Click for a link to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention report on PFOA.. (Calhoun Times, GA)
Harbor seals may help determine effect on humans of eating toxic fish Oct 20, 2007
In a new development, PFOS and PFOA - compounds shed from Teflon-like coatings in cookware and fabric guards - are turning up in the animals. Some manufacturers have stopped using the compounds, but they remain in the bay. (San Francisco Chronicle)
DuPont won't face criminal charges over Teflon reporting Oct 16, 2007
The subpoena called on the company to provide information, including documents it previously gave to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, which is investigating the potential health risks of perfluorooctanoic acid, or PFOA, also known as C-8 ... 25 million for environmental projects to settle the EPA's allegations that the company violated the Toxic Substances Control Act and the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act by withholding information about the potential health risks posed by... (USA Today -- Money)
DuPont distorted C8 study, scientists say Oct 14, 2007
Scientists had completed a study of the potential health effects of the chemical C8, or PFOA. They had some good news. To date, no human health effects known to be caused by PFOA, announced the headline on DuPonts news release ... The study results, Bossert said, Reaffirm what we have said all along: There are no known human health effects associated with exposure to PFOA.. (Charleston Gazette, WV -- News)
Babies at risk from non-stick chemical Sep 9, 2007
Dr Mariann Lloyd-Smit, of the National Toxic Networks Australia, said the study was the latest showing a link between ill-health and the chemical perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA), used in non-stick frying pans and barbecues ... The study at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health found the higher the concentration of PFOA, the lower the birth weight and the smaller the head circumference ... Australia's National Industrial Chemicals Notification and Assessment Scheme said no PFOA is... (Sydney Morning Herald -- Australia)
Non-Stick Chemicals Linked To Low Birth Weight Aug 25, 2007
Researchers from Vanderbilt University Medical Center and UCLA tested blood from 1,400 pregnant women in a Danish birth registry and found that babies of women with high perfluorooctanoate (PFOA) levels were 175 grams lighter than those born to mothers in the lowest exposure level. Animal tests have previously linked both PFOA and perfluorooctane sulfonate (PFOS) to cancer and developmental problems. (Science Daily)
Polyfluoroalkyl Exposure Associated With Lower Birth Weight And Size Aug 19, 2007
Exposure to perfluorooctane sulfonate (PFOS) and perfluorooctanoate (PFOA) in the womb is statistically associated with lower weight and head circumference at birth, according to an analysis of nearly 300 umbilical cord blood samples led by researchers at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health ... PFOS and PFOA are polyfluoroalkyl compounds (PFCs) ubiquitous man-made chemicals used in a variety of consumer products, including as a protective coating on food-contact packaging,... (Science Daily)
Non-stick chemical exposure tied to small babies Aug 18, 2007
Research in rodents has suggested that exposure to the chemicals perfluorooctane sulfonate (PFOS) and perfluorooctanoate (PFOA) harms development, senior author Dr. Lynn R. Goldman, from Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health in Baltimore, and colleagues note ... ADVERTISEMENT (article continues below) To investigate, the researchers tested cord blood samples from 293 pregnant women for PFOA and PFOS and then examined the levels in relation to pregnancy outcomes ... However, in the... (Scientific American)
Plaintiffs' Paradise Jul 3, 2007
DuPont (nyse: - - ) is fighting a similar battle over perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA), a chemical used to manufacture Teflon nonstick coatings that lawyers say lingers in cookware and can be released under high heat. The Environmental Protection Agency disagrees, saying there's no "reason for consumers to stop using any products because of concerns about PFOA." ... West Virginia lawyer Larry A. Winter says consumers would have paid less for Teflon cookware had they known about PFOA. Whether it's... (Forbes)
Safety myth busting May 30, 2007
One of the chemicals used to bond the non-stick coating to the pan, perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA), is considered likely carcinogenic in humans because high doses cause certain cancers in lab animals. But manufacturers say there is essentially no PFOA left in the cookware after it's manufactured ... Although low levels of PFOA occur in most people's blood, questions remain about how it got there. (Globe and Mail)
Suspected carcinogen polluting water supply May 22, 2007
The compound, perfluoro-octanoic acid, or PFOA, is believed to be released during the manufacture of fluorine-related products, such as water repellents. Since it is not yet known whether high concentrations of PFOA affect human health, the group is urging that further research on the compound be conducted ... The group, led by Akio Koizumi, a professor at Kyoto University, checked about 80 points on rivers across the country in 2003 and detected PFOA at all of the sites, confirming the... (News on Japan, Japan)
Teflon chemicals in babies' cord blood May 1, 2007
Researchers at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health in Baltimore found perfluorooctane sulfonate (PFOS) and perfluorooctanoate (PFOA) in the infants' umbilical-cord blood ... Eight U.S. companies, including DuPont Co., agreed last year to virtually eliminate PFOA from consumer products by 2015. (Newsday -- Health)
Report: 3M long had internal concerns about chemicals Apr 26, 2007
PFOA, one of the compounds, is now a suspected human carcinogen, the paper said. The Minneapolis/St. (New Mexico Business Weekly, NM)
Man-made Chemicals Detected In Newborns Apr 25, 2007
An analysis of nearly 300 umbilical cord blood samples led by researchers at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health shows that newborn babies are exposed to perfluorooctane sulfonate (PFOS) and perfluorooctanoate (PFOA) while in the womb. PFOS and PFOA are polyfluoroalkyl compounds (PFCs) ubiquitous man-made chemicals used in a variety of consumer products, including as a protective coating on food-contact packaging, textiles and carpets, and in the manufacturing of insecticides ...... (Science Daily)
More 3M chemicals found in three more landfills Apr 6, 2007
The landfill is along the Mississippi River, and when Pollution Control Agency scientists sampled surface water just downstream from the former dump at Pig s Eye Lake, a backwater of the Mississippi, they found levels of PFOA about five times higher than the state drinking-water guideline. MPCA spokesman Ralph Pribble said the agency will continue those tests, but that other landfills with PFCs are a higher priority for cleanup. (Winona Daily News, MN)
Good Question: What 3M Chemicals Are In The Water? Mar 28, 2007
The three chemicals at issue go by the shorthand of PFOA, PFOS, and PFBA. 3M used them to make products such as Scotchgard and Teflon until about 2002 ... The Health Department said some levels of PFOA and PFOS are hazardous and have been found to cause liver and thyroid problems in animals. (WCCO.com, MN)
Cancer rates high in C8 areas Mar 14, 2007
The analyses presented here establish only that the rates of certain cancers previously associated with occupational PFOA exposure are elevated in counties in which residents may have been exposed to PFOA via the water supply, the study said. They do not demonstrate a causal relationship between PFOA and individual cancer cases ... These data do, however, establish the need for further examination of the impact of non-occupational exposures to PFOA on cancer incidence in communities, the study... (Charleston Gazette, WV -- News)
Chemicals In Drinking Water Shake Metro Residents Mar 4, 2007
Just last week, the Health Department revised its maximum concentrations of two different 3M chemicals in the PFC family -- PFOA and PFOS -- downward, with PFOA going to 0. 5 ppb from 1. (WCCO.com, MN)
Safe Levels Cut For 3M Chemicals In Groundwater Mar 2, 2007
The new guidelines apply to chemicals called PFOA and PFOS, both of which have been detected in south Washington County's groundwater ... The Health Department dropped its recommended safe level for PFOA from 1 part per billion to 0 ... PFOS and PFOA were detected two years ago in Oakdale and Lake Elmo's water supplies, and 3M built a $2. (WCCO.com, MN)
Chemical exposure may lower birth weight Feb 24, 2007
While several compounds were found, higher levels of ammonium perfluorooctaonate, also known as PFOA or C8, and perfluorooctane sulphonate anion, or PFOS, were discovered ... The EPA has pushed for the phase out of PFOA and PFOS in the manufacture of various products ... DuPont uses PFOA to produce Teflon. (Herald Online, SC -- Health)
New C8 study finds baby development problems Feb 22, 2007
C8 is another name for ammonium perfluorooctanoate, or PFOA. DuPont has used the chemical since the 1950s at its Washington Works plant south of Parkersburg. Researchers are finding that people around the world have C8 in their blood. (Charleston Gazette, WV -- News)
'It's not a fleeting fad,' author says Feb 14, 2007
DuPont faces lawsuits alleging that perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA), a chemical compound used in the making of Teflon, poses public health risks and contaminates drinking water charges denied by DuPont. Two years ago, DuPont agreed to a $16 million settlement with the Environmental Protection Agency after it was accused of failing to report data on PFOA, a likely carcinogen ... DuPont later volunteered to halt by 2015 all PFOA emissions from its plants. (USA Today -- Money)
* DuPont to stop using PFOA by 2015 Feb 7, 2007
DuPont to stop using PFOA by 2015 ... The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) asked the Wilmington, Delaware-based chemical giant and seven other companies last year to commit to a 95 percent reduction in environmental emissions and product content levels of perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA) and associated chemicals by 2010 ... The companies also were asked to work toward the elimination of PFOA and associated chemicals from emissions and products by 2015. (Taipei Times, Taiwan -- World)
DuPont sets goal of eliminating use of Teflon chemical Feb 6, 2007
The Environmental Protection Agency asked the Wilmington-based chemical giant and seven other companies last year to commit to a 95 percent reduction in environmental emissions and product content levels of perfluorooctanoic acid, or PFOA, and associated chemicals by 2010. The companies also were asked to work toward the elimination of PFOA and associated chemicals from emissions and products by 2015 ... On Monday, DuPont said technological advances have allowed it to remove more than 97 percent... (San Diego Union-Tribune -- Business)
3M Chemicals Found In More Metro-Area Wells Jan 21, 2007
Two other perfluorochemicals, PFOS and PFOA, were detected two years ago in water supplies in Oakdale and Lake Elmo. 3M recently paid for a new $2. (WCCO.com, MN)
