Forever chemicals are all around us. Most people ingest or inhale these synthetic chemicals, which include per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), phenols, and parabens, through contaminated water and food — even air. They’re also in our cookware, packaging materials, furniture, clothes and carpets, making them nearly impossible to avoid.
In fact, studies show that nearly everyone has already been exposed to PFAS and has them circulating within their bodies. An estimated 97% of Americans have PFAS in their blood, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
A new report, published last week in the Journal of Exposure Science & Environmental Epidemiology, found that people with cancer have significantly higher levels of forever chemicals in their bodies. Could these chemicals be responsible for chronic diseases like cancer and cardiovascular disease? That’s the question scientists are eager to answer.
Forever chemicals break down slowly and can stay in the body for months or years. “What makes them different and important is that they are toxic, entirely man-made, and can remain in the environment and in the human body for a long time after we put them there,” Scott Bartell, a professor of environmental and occupational health at the University of California, Irvine, told HuffPost.