PFAS: Forever Chemicals
What You Need to Know
What to Do Now to Protect Yourself and Your Family
Fortunately, our bodies have ways of removing harmful substances.
They’re reasonably successful, or we wouldn’t be here.
But what happens when our biology meets artificial materials never found in nature?
The detoxification process gets short-circuited UNLESS . . . you do what’s necessary to enable your liver and gall bladders to accomplish their jobs.
However, only an estimated 3% of Americans have fully optimized their body’s liver/gall bladder/large intestine detoxification pathway.
That’s critically important now, because for over 85 years, humanity has been manufacturing large quantities of PFAS: per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances.
AKA: “forever chemicals.”
Love May or Not Last Forever, but PFAS Stick Around Longer
PFAS are thousands of human-made substances used in a wide range of industries since the invention of the first PFA – Teflon – in 1938.
They’re defined as having at least one carbon atom fluorinated with a carbon-fluoride bone. These carbon-fluoride bonds are the strongest chemical bond. That explains why they are so difficult to eradicate. (These bonds are rare in nature.)
That strong chemical bond means that when PFAS are added to other substances, the whole is strong. With that strong bond, they resist degradation, heat, spoilage, fire and more.
They do not burn. They do not react with other chemicals.
Some of the first generation of PFAS are no longer being used in quantity or have been dropped.
However, there’re still huge amounts of them in our environment.
Manufacturers have replaced them with a second generation of PFAS, but the newer ones may be harmful as well.
Because they reduce the cost and waste of chemical products, PFAS are popular with manufacturers.
They’re also common in consumer products, because they offer convenience that SEEMS to be free.
Why scrub a frying pan when you can buy one coated with Teflon?
Why work hard to clean food spilled onto your carpet, when you can buy carpeting that’s stain resistant?
Unfortunately, in the long run, we pay for this convenience with our health and our lives.
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), PFAS are in the blood of 98% of Americans – and probably most everybody else around the globe as well.
That bonding between carbon and fluoride atoms is rare in the natural world – and that means we have few defenses against it.
Our bodies are extensive biochemical factories that are constantly carrying out hundreds of thousands of chemical processes. Your body right now is fiercely busy breaking substances apart and down, recombining them, and using them to create new substances.
PFAS resist that biological assembly and re-assembly, because that’s how they’re made. Plus, they mimic fatty acids.
Your body doesn’t like encountering alien chemicals that can’t be broken down in the usual ways.
Where are PFAS Found?
Where are they not?
They’re in:
* Drinking water (about 1/3 of global groundwater and 45% of American drinking water)
* Microwave popcorn packages
* Firefighting foams
* Soil and air
* Water resistant clothing
* Paint, sealants and varnishes
* Cosmetics
* Stain-Resistant furniture
* Nonstick cookware
* Personal care products
* Cosmetics
* Paint
* Pesticides
* Toilet paper
Sadly, we can’t escape.
These forever chemicals are strong. They travel through air and water, so there’re high concentrations in the coastal regions of both the Arctic and Antarctica.
They’re even in penguin eggs.
More Specific PFAS Sites
The Environmental Working Group is a nonprofit organization working hard to identify hazardous compounds in our environment, including the products we buy and consume.
They have a map app on their site where you check to see if PFAS have been detected in your area. Are you in one of the 2,858 locations (in all 50 states and two territories) where PFAS have been found?
They have an app for drinking water. Put in your zip code, and you’ll find out whether PFAS have been found in your drinking water.
Adverse Health Effects of PFAS
Researchers are still investigating and studying the adverse effects of PFAS on our health.
They don’t know whether any amount of PFAS is “safe.” Or how much exposure to PFAS is dangerous.
Personally, I suspect we all suffer from PFAS to some degree, because we are all exposed to PFAS, like it or not.
I suspect that dealing with PFAS simply drains energy from our other resources, but, for most of us now, the damage is not enough to go to a doctor and get diagnosed with a disease.
But, like a car with an engine that needs tuning, PFAS are a constant drain on us, by reducing the efficiency of our biological processes.
Remember: PFAS are found throughout your body.
Health Problems Associated With PFAS
1. Cancers
2. Thyroid disease
3. Decreased fertility and more low birth weight babies and children with developmental delays
4. Higher blood pressure when pregnant
5. Higher LDL cholesterol and increased risk of obesity
6. Reduced immune system response and effectiveness
7. Interference with hormones
1. Cancer
Researchers have found links between various PFAS and various cancers, including:
* Kidney
* Testicular
* Breast
* Ovarian and endometrial
* Thyroid
* Childhood leukemia
* Non-Hodgkin lymphoma
* Prostate
These links are still being researched.
However, PFAS do disrupt your endocrine gland and hormonal system, which may be why hormone-related cancers (breast, prostate, ovarian, testicles and endometrial) are linked to them.
The World Health Organization (WHO) classifies PFAS as Group One carcinogens, up there with tobacco smoke, asbestos, radiation and processed meat.
More specifically, the part of WHO known as The International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC), classified the PFAS perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA) as a Group One carcinogen.
Likely Ways PFAS Cause/Influence Your Body to Become Cancerous
a. DNA damage
PFAS do disrupt DNA. When DNA is damaged, that can lead to unhealthy mutations and cancer itself.
b. Hormone disruption
PFAS throw off the balance of hormones in your body.
c. Immune system disruption
PFAS interferes with the functioning of your immune system.
This can impair your body’s ability to detect cancer while it’s still new, allowing tumors to grow to a dangerous size and spread.
d. Disruption of cell metabolism
Your cells need to create energy and perform many important functions. PFAS interferes with this, and any impairment in your body’s health can lead to cancer or other adverse conditions.
A study published in 2023 found perfluorooctanesulfonic acid (n-PFOS) raised the risk of thyroid cancer by 56%.
Some studies say the PFAS block the detection of thyroid cancer cells by the immune system, thus allowing them to grow.
PFAS damage your thyroid gland through increasing inflammation, oxidative stress, cell death and altering DNA.
Therefore, it’s no surprise PFAS can also lead to . . .
2. Thyroid disease
Some PFAS appear to disrupt the thyroid gland. They’re endocrine disruptors and thyroid disruptors.
This is concerning because the throid gland produces hormones, and those thyroid hormones are critical to the regulation of our metabolisms. That is, how we produce and use energy.
That affects your resting energy, your weight, any weight gain or loss, and more.
This relates to cardiovascular disease – and pregnancy and fetal development.
In 2018, a study done on people in Korea found a significant association between elevated free levels of the thyroid hormone thyroxine (FT$) and certain PFAS, though which ones varied between men and women.
Researchers concluded this association would eventually result in the disruption of thyroid hormone homeostasis, and this would affect both resting basal metabolic rate and the synthesis of protein.
3. Reduced fertility, more low birth-weight and underdeveloped babies and children with developmental disorders
By affecting output of thyroid hormones, PFAS can adversely affect the growth of a fetus, leading to a greater risk of having a low birthweight baby.
They can also increase risk for a preterm deliverability and neurodevelopmental problems.
At first, fetuses are dependent on their mother’s thyroid hormones. After a time they begin producing their own, but this can also be affected by PFAS.
A recent study from Denmark found higher levels of PFAS in pregnant women increased the odds of miscarriage.
4. Higher blood pressure when pregnant
PFAS can reduce trophoblast invasion process, which the fetus needs for proper blood flow and supply of nutrition.
Some studies have shown PFAS increases risk of hypertension during pregnancy.
5. Higher Levels of LDL Cholesterol
Low Density Lipoprotein is the “bad” cholesterol.
Therefore, it’s concerning that studies are showing an association between exposure to some kinds of PFAS and disruption of your blood lipids.
It also elevates levels of total cholesterol and triglycerides.
Therefore, PFAS raise your risk of suffering cardiovascular disease.
6. Decreased immune system function
Recent studies show that PFAS reduces the effectiveness of your immune system. In fact, this constitutes the strongest evidence for PFAS-caused immunotoxicity.
That means PFAS begin reducing the effectiveness of our immune systems at lower concentrations than they cause other health problems.
7. Endocrine disruption
By causing hormone disruption, PFAS upset the balance these powerful biochemicals that regulate your health and your you feel.
So, hopefully we now agree PFAS are a risk to human health.
What next?
Strategies to Reduce PFAS Contamination
The best cure is always prevention.
Unfortunately, it’s not possible to totally isolate yourself from PFAS – not when they’re even in penguin eggs.
However, less is always better than more, and it is possible to take reasonable precautions.
A. Filter your drinking water
In April 2024, the Environmental Protection Agency finally came up with the first official limits on PFAS – six different types – in drinking water.
To give you an idea of how toxic PFAS are, the EPA limit varies from 4 and 10 parts per trillion. That’s equivalent to one drop in one thousand Olympic-sized swimming pools.
Clearly, local American municipal water companies are not going to implement this. It’d cost billions.
Bottled water? Tests have found PFAS in many water bottles.
If your drinking water comes from a well, don’t assume it’s safe. Many wells contain PFAS. Have yours tested by a qualified expert.
That leaves water filters. The three best types for filtering out PFAS are:
a. Activated carbon – granulated activated carbon (GAC)
This is for small-scale use, such as refrigerators and some pitcher filters.
Make sure the ones you buy are certified for PFAS.
b. Ion exchange resin
This is probably the best choice. You can install it in your entire house, as well as find it in water pitchers, but it is expensive.
c. Reverse osmosis
These filters are usually installed in your kitchen sink.
Once again, the Environmental Working Group has the confirmed data and names the winners and losers.
They found three brands of water filter home pitchers that eliminated 100% of PFAS. A fourth eliminated 98%.
However, their findings are for small, pitcher filters for drinking and cooking.
If you prefer to install a kitchen sink unit or filter all the water used in your home, you’ll need to find and consult with experts who can help you decide what’s appropriate for your water, the size of your house, your needs and your budget.
B. Cook with nonstick pots, pans, and woks
Never forget – the first PFAS was Teflon.
The original Teflon has now been replaced with a newer PFAS – GENX – but that seems to have health hazards as well.
Instead, cook with stainless steel cookware or cast iron pans.
C. Avoid being around PFAS products
PFAS are not only in the soil and water, they’re in the air.
That’s especially true of industrial and manufacturing environments where PFAS are used to make products.
It’s also true of homes or other indoor environments where PFAS products are in use, such as stain-free carpets and furniture.
It’s also true if you have open cans. Avoid inhaling any fumes from paint, sealants, varnishes, pesticides or other such substances.
Air purifiers are not focussed on PFAS, because there’re so many other contaminants in the air, but carbon activated filters do remove at least some PFAS.
HEPA filters are good for removing dust and other problems, but not for PFAS.
D. Avoid as much “convenience” as possible
Manufacturers invented Teflon because people didn’t want to work hard to scrub their frying pans.
PFAS are now used in many contexts where people want convenience:
* Grease-proof food packaging
* Water and stain-resistant clothing (Scotchguard, Stainmaster, Polartec and Gore-Tex, among others)
* Easy gliding dental floss (Oral-B Glide, made by Gortex)
* Stain-resistant furniture and carpeting
* Waterproof cosmetics
Whenever a product or its packaging is going to “resist” something natural (such as stains, heat, water or corrosion), there’s probably a strong carbon-fluoride bond making that possible.
This includes plastic cleaning pads. Replace with bamboo, sisan or coconut.
* Ultra-soft or plus toilet paper
Toilet paper made from bamboo contains no PFAS. Neither does toilet tissue made from recycled paper.
Brands Cottonelle and Kimberly-Clark have said they do not use PFAS manufacturing their toilet papers.
E. Clean your house more often
PFAS could be in the dust on your coffee table. Therefore, dust all surfaces, sweep bare floors and vacuum your carpets on a regular basis.
Sadly, in today’s environment, you can’t totally avoid PFAS even if you follow all the above situations.
What about what you eat?
Some of us eat more PFAS than we realize.
F. Look at labels
Look for “Per- and polyfluoroalkyl” (PFAS, PFOA, PFOS, PFNA and many more) in the list of ingredients.
It’s not easy to be sure, with so many different chemical names.
Check out the product lists at ewg.com for the Environmental Working Group.
The one food to eat – and why
The one thing scientifically proven to reduce PFAS in the human body:
Oatmeal
Yes, oatmeal.
Oatmeal (plus barley, and a few mushrooms) contains a form of chains of soluble fiber known as beta glucans.
Those beta glucans travel through your digestive system, winding up in your large intestine.
Therefore, oatmeal supplies your intestine with plenty of beta glucans fiber.
When PFAS are in your blood, your liver pulls them out of your blood and sends them to your gall bladder to be detoxified.
Your gall bladder mixes the PFAS with bile acids. They’re chemically similar to PFAS, so this works out well for us.
The fiber from beta glucans (especially) binds the bile acids and PFAS to itself.
By increasing the amount of fiber in your intestines, you’re encouraging fiber to bind the PFAS in your bile acids.
You know what happens next, right?
Yes, it all slides right out the “back door.”
Now those PFAS are in your toilet bowl, not your body.
Along with the fiber and bile acids binding to them.
How to Avoid the Low-Fiber Toxic Loop
The above scenario assumes you’ve eaten your oatmeal, and so have plenty of fiber in your large intestine.
Without that fiber, the PFAS are absorbed from your intestines back into your blood.
Therefore they wind up back in your liver, which they can damage.
Without fiber, your liver works hard to get rid of the PFAS, but they don’t leave your body. They just get re-absorbed back into your blood.
You can’t avoid them, but, when you eat oatmeal, you’re consuming the beta glucans that help your body to keep removing them.
Green leafy vegetables do come with plenty of fiber. Therefore, although they may have PFAS, they also contain the means (fiber) to remove the PFAS.
Only about 3% of Americans eat as much fiber daily as the government recommends.
That means only those 3% are as fully protected from the health threat of PFAS as possible.
The Oatmeal Studies
Environmental Health just published the results of a study run from 2019 to 2020.
The researchers studied 224 Canadians, eighteen to sixty-five years old, with elevated LDL cholesterol levels.
At the start of the study, their blood was tested for seventeen different kinds of PFAS.
One group was given one gram daily of beta glucans.
The control group was given one gram daily of brown rice, which contains no beta glucans.
After four weeks, their blood was again tested for PFAS levels.
The exact results varied across the seventeen different PFAS studied.
However, it’s clear that overall PFAS levels did decline significantly, including the ones scientists believe pose the greatest risk to our health.
Study results seem to indicate just one gram of beta glucans from oatmeal eaten daily will, over time, lower your PFAS.
If you eat a cup of oatmeal – maybe a little too much, depending on your size and appetite – you get three grams of beta glucans.
More than the study participants.
NOTE: Barley has almost twice as much beta glucans as does oatmeal.
Do we have to eat oatmeal?
Eat more of all fibers – lots of fibers.
We now know oatmeal reduces PFAS in your body.
But is it just the beta glucans?
Not all kinds of soluble fiber sequester the PFAS in your bile acids so they’re removed from your body in your poop.
Many soluble fibers can do this, but not all.
Besides beta glucans, psyllium husks, pectin and raw guar gum also help push bile acids with PFAS out of your system.
Beta Glucans = Anti-Cancer
In a study published in 2017, researchers raised cancer cells in a petri dish, then exposed them to beta glucans from oatmeal.
They found “strong anti-tumor properties” while, at the same time, the beta glucans did not harm normal cells.
A study of petri dishes is not definitive, but it’s promising.
Beta glucans appears to protect us from PFAS-caused cancer in two ways:
A. Getting the PFAS out of our bodies.
B. Fighting any tumor caused by PFAS.
1. Liver removes PFAS from blood
2 PFAS go down common hepatic duct to gall bladder
3. PFAS are cleared out with bile acids
4. Bile acids containing pfas go into the large intestine
5. From large intestine they can go one of two places.
Important factor: plenty of fiber in the large intestine?
Yes or No?
If yes – bile acids and pfas are removed from body along with feces. Success!
If no – pfas linger in large intestine, where they are re-absorbed into the blood.
Result? They are still in the body – still a health threat.
Dramatizing/Showing that should be the point.
Lots of fiber in intestine?
Yes – toxins go out with the poop
No – toxins remain in body to poison us
Reducing PFAS Through Diet
Just for the record: I’ve never liked the phrase “eat clean.”
To me, it just sounds so . . . smug and arrogant.
Like, those of us who don’t brag about eating clean must be dining on mud, sand and dirt.
Otherwise, I don’t know what it means. A healthy diet? What’s that?
You often hear of someone getting sick even though they “eat a healthy diet.”
Again, what – specifically – does that even mean?
Hundreds, maybe thousands, of YouTube channels are conducting diet wars on each other over what foods are actually “healthy.”
I have my opinion, and so does everybody else.
But I don’t assume I know what kind of foods you consider “clean.”
Besides, PFAS are so ubiquitous in the environment, they’re impossible to avoid 100%.
Reduce exposure to, yes – totally escape, no. Remember: even penguin eggs at the South Pole contain PFAS.
Unfortunately, there’s no guaranteed, “PFAS-free” diet.
However, we know some foods contain more PFAS than others, including:
a. Fish and seafood
b. Processed meats
c. Pork
d. Edible oils, including canola, soybean and rapeseed
e. Green leafy vegetables
Yes, these are undoubtedly healthy. You should eat them. But, in today’s world, they probably have some PFAS.
(Vegetables also have a key anti-PFAS component as well. See farther down.)
f. All packaged foods
This includes take-out meals, microwave popcorn, baked goods, candies, commercial teas, bottled water and sports drinks.
Small wonder most people accumulate more PFAS as the years go by.
Officially, it takes two to five years for our bodies to excrete them. It can be more. Some PFAS may have a five-year half-life inside our bodies.
Here are dietary measures to help reduce and eliminate PFAS:
Dietary Strategies
a. As much as possible, eat organic.
A lot of the produce grown in the United States is fertilized, some with sewage sludge.
Sewage sludge contains mucho PFAS. However, plants fertilized with sewage sludge cannot be labeled “organic.”
b. As much as possible, eat local. Or grow your own.
Even organically grown plants can pick up PFAS through travel, or through heat stress.
The shorter a tomato’s path from plant to table, the lower the PFAS risk.
c. Don’t store leftovers in plastic packaging.
d. Don’t heat foods while they’re still in grease-resistant packaging
e. Eat at home as much as possible
This will lower your exposure to PFAS in restaurant food and food packaging, especially fast foods.
Other Detox Methods
Are there more scientifically documented ways to remove PFAS?
Unfortunately, no.
That doesn’t mean you should just live on oatmeal, though.
Your body has various detoxification pathways besides the liver pushing toxins to bile acids and on to the large intestine to be pooped out.
Although research has yet to demonstrate their ability to remove PFAS, getting rid of all possible toxins can’t be anything but healthy.
You don’t need fasting, herbal teas, laxatives, diuretics, vitamins or minerals (except the nutrition we all need anyway).
You Do Need to Eat a Healthy Diet.
A. Eat foods high in sulphur
These include garlic, onions, beans and cruciferous vegetables such as kale and broccoli.
They’re generally associated with biological detoxification.
They are healthy in many ways, and so may strengthen your body to remove or resist the PFAS.
B. Eat foods high in antioxidants
Like foods with high sulphur content, this suggestion is oriented toward general detoxification.
Although antioxidants don’t themselves remove toxins, they counteract the harmful effects of free radicals, limiting the damage.
They also stimulate your liver to produce more detoxification enzymes.
C. Fruits, vegetables and legumes all contain compounds which support your general health, and your body’s ability to rid itself of unhealthful substances.
They all contain antioxidants as well. (Berries and green leafy vegetables the most.)
They all contain fiber.
They don’t all contain sulphur, but the sulphur-rich veggies also contain antioxidants and fiber.
Therefore, all fruits, vegetables and legumes (beans for most of us, but also hummus and peanuts) support PFAS both directly and indirectly.
D. Stay hydrated
I am NOT an “drink 8 glasses of water” advocate.
I don’t even believe the gurus follow their own advice.
However, we do need to maintain adequate hydration. Eight glasses TOTAL is probably about right.
If you eat a lot of whole plant foods such as fruits, vegetables, beans and whole grains, you’ll automatically consume a large amount of water.
Of course, you’ll need more during and after workouts or when you’re sweating on hot days.
Green tea is even better than water.
AVOID: all sodas, energy drinks, sugar, high fructose corn syrup, caffeine and other commercial junk.
E. Support your liver
PFAS can damage or inflame your liver.
Plus, it’s the main organ of detoxification, especially for PFAS, so you want to keep your liver strong and functional.
Your liver carries out over 500 different biological functions – even before it sends your PFAS to your gall bladder.
As an important organ, it’s right behind your heart and brain. You want to take care of it under all circumstances.
And its main job is filtering your blood.
Blood goes to your liver from your digestive tract, to protect the rest of your body from anything harmful you may have eaten.
Besides unnatural, industrial chemicals, it looks for typical toxins, adult drinks and other medicines, pesticides, pollutants and carcinogens.
According to Kristen Smith, M.S., R.D.N., a spokesperson for the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics, certain foods can degrade your liver over time.
These include: sugar and saturated fat.
Foods she recommends to support liver health include:
* Cruciferous vegetable (kale, broccoli, Brussel’s sprouts, cabbage)
* Dark green leafy vegetables (almost all food green leaves are healthy, the darker the green the better – and ordinary lettuce contains the least nutritional value)
In addition to the fiber and antioxidants, these also contain flavonoids, carotenoids, sulforaphane, and indoles. These too help your liver carry out its jobs.
* Sprouts and microgreens
Microbroccoli also contain sulforaphane.
* Garlic
In addition to its high sulphur content, it contains the phytonutrient allicin – which helps your liver remove toxins, including food additives.
* Artichokes
They contain two compounds, cynarin and silymarin, and both support liver health.
Research demonstrates silymarin reduces oxidative stress and damage to your liver. Silymarin is also sold as a supplement.
* Apples
They contain pectin which, like beta glucans, binds PFAS and bile acids, so they all get pooped away.
* Avocados
One of the few plant foods that contain a high amount of healthy, monosaturated fat.
According to a 2022 study, avocados improve mitochondrial function in rats with liver disease, alleviating it.
* Limit – or (let’s just say it out loud) – eliminate adult drinks
Adult drinks is one of the substances your liver is designed to remove from your body.
However, there’s always a cost.
Chronic adult drinks consumption severely stresses your liver, causing inflammation, scarring and the build-up of fat.
The dangers of adult drinks -caused liver cirrhosis have been known and acknowledged for decades.
* Sleep at least 7 to 9 hours per night
While you’re asleep is when your body removes many toxins and does its best to repair all the damage they’ve caused.
Without enough sleep, you short-circuit these processes.
* Reduce sugar and processed foods
They harm your body, including your liver and kidneys.
Over time, by forcing fat to accumulate inside your liver, they can damage your liver just as much as excess adult drinks.
Not too many years ago, if somebody told you they had a liver problem, you were justified in assuming that meant they drank too much.
But recently, more liver problems are caused by the accumulation of excess fat inside the liver. Now, Non-Alcoholic Fatty Liver Disease (NAFLD) is more prevalent than adult drinks-caused cirrhosis.
Exercise
Your skin is the largest organ of elimination in the human body.
That makes exercising one of our favorite ways to “detox.” Once you warm up, your sweat glands begin pushing perspiration out from your skin.
If you have access to a sauna, you push your body to a deep sweat while just sitting around. Or attend a hot yoga class.
We all “know” sweating cleans us from the inside, right? When we have a problem, we know we’re supposed to “sweat it out.”
Unfortunately, that’s one of those things being debated.
The purpose of perspiration is to cool off the body. Besides water, sweat contains urea, salts, small amounts of vitamins, a few minerals including copper, zinc, calcium, iron and magnesium, ammonia and trace amounts of heavy metals and toxins such as bisphenol A (BPA).
Some sources cast doubt on the effectiveness of exercising for detoxification. They claim the amounts of heavy metals and toxins removed from your body via sweat are small and negligible.
However, a review of 122 studies researching the role of perspiration to remove toxins published in 2012 did find sweat removed a significant amount of heavy metals.
They also found that when study participants sweat because of carrying out exercise, their sweat contained more heavy metals than did those who sweated from a sauna. Those heavy metals included lead, cadmium, chromium and arsenic.
A study done in China in 2016 found that people who exercised regularly had lower levels of heavy metals than people who didn’t.
Clearly, because it’s so difficult for our bodies to remove PFAS, we need to maintain our biologies as functional as possible.
That requires exercise, especially to keep the blood flowing freely.
Your primary organ of elimination and detoxification is your liver. It needs healthy blood to perform its many functions – including pushing PFAS and all toxins to the gall bladder, to be mixed with bile acids – which all then go into your large intestine.
Then your large intestines eliminate the fiber/bile acids/PFAS that have all been bound together.
Your Kidneys Eliminate Some PFAS
Besides your poop, your urine is the main way your body eliminates PFAS.
That tells you your kidneys also play a major role in making sure your PFAS remain low.
However, PFAS also accummulate in your kidneys. They reduce kidney function, and may be connected with kidney cancer.
Therefore, your kidneys need healthy blood circulation, both to eliminate PFAS and to resist the kidney damage those chemicals cause.
Donate Your PFAS
Because PFAS accumulate in your bloodstream, the most obvious way of getting rid of them is to donate a pint of blood. As long as you otherwise qualify, you can do so every eight weeks.
In a year-long study done on firefighters in Australia, the ones who donated the most blood had fewer PFAS than those who didn’t.
Is that legal?
If the Red Cross and/or the federal government decide not to accept donated blood with PFAS in it, that would shut down the whole blood donation system in the United States. PFAS is detectable in the blood of 98% of Americans.
If you actively try to minimize exposure to PFAS plus you eat oatmeal and lots of other fiber-rich foods, you probably have less PFAS in your blood than average.
That means your blood probably contains fewer PFAS than the blood recipient has now – and fewer than most everybody else who’s donating blood.
If you have further questions, talk to the Red Cross.
But whoever gets your blood must have a more immediate medical problem.
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