If we were to ask what the most popular kitchenware of a period was, most of us would say teflon pans and pots. Teflon pans, which make cooking extremely easy thanks to the non-sticking of dishes, have been at the center of discussions for many years.
Yes, Teflon makes our life easier. So, is there any harm done to us while doing this? Considering the old Teflon in particular, it has been proven by many studies that the substances in these pans are harmful to your health. There is even a movie called “Dark Waters” based on the true story about the harms of Teflon. Then let’s take a closer look at whether Teflon is really harmful to health or just an exaggeration.
How did Teflon originate?
Teflon was discovered in 1938 by DuPont chemist Roy J. Plunkett. By 1945, the name “Teflon” was registered and in 1946 products with this substance began to appear on the market. Although Teflon is associated with items such as pans and pots, it can be found in automotive parts, clothing, tools, light bulbs and many other materials. In fact, PFOA was used to coat equipment that processes uranium hexafluoride in the first atomic bomb, making Teflon “dangerous.”
So is Teflon really harmful?
Cookware coated with Teflon has no proven health risks to humans, according to the American Cancer Society (ACS). However, the studies conducted in the light of the court and the examinations of some experts show us that this article is not very well-intentioned.
PFOA, a chemical found in Teflon pans in the past, is thought to pose a risk to human health.
According to studies, consuming or absorbing perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA) can cause various health problems in humans. PFOA, one of the chemicals in the family of polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) that stays in the body and accumulates over time, can cause immunological effects along with reproductive and developmental, liver and kidney disorders in laboratory animal tests.
PFOA from Teflon, which is marketed all over the world as a savior, has entered the bodies of 99 percent of people.
Teflon, produced by DuPont, the world’s largest chemical company, was sold to the whole world, including our country, with huge marketing processes. We made many things in these Teflon pans, from fries to scrambled eggs. However, while doing this, we also took the PFOA in the Teflon pans into our bodies. Or, as DuPont put it, C-8 entered people’s bodies.
The World Health Organization’s International Agency for Research on Cancer classifies PFOA as “Possibly carcinogenic to humans.”
Laboratory studies have found that PFOA is associated with liver cancer, testicular cancer, and pancreatic cancer. Studies have also been done on humans. Studies of workers exposed to PFOA at a DuPont factory found an association between those who died of kidney cancer and the presence of PFOA in their bodies.
According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, PFAS deposits in the body can pose an increased risk for increased cholesterol, weaker births, high blood pressure, decreased vaccine responses, and some cancers.
Research in the DuPont case, whose story was even made into a movie, also showed us the harmful effects of PFOA.
The movie Dark Waters, which was released in 2019, starring names such as Mark Ruffalo and Anna Hattaway, tells the process of a lawyer named Rob Bilott taking the effect of the toxic chemicals released into the river from the factory of the world’s giant chemical company DuPont in West Virginia to the court.
In the lawsuit that continued for many years, DuPont paid a total of 921 million dollars in compensation to 3,535 people who were harmed as a result of PFOA. You can watch the movie, which is based on a true story, on Blu TV.
PFOA has not been used in Teflon production since 2013.
PFOA is no longer used in Teflon production since 2013. However, health organizations say that we can get PFOA into our bodies through the water systems people drink, fish caught from these systems, or products packaged with these chemicals.
There is a significant improvement in PFOA values compared to the past.
According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), PFOA levels have been on the decline since 2002. It is stated that from 1999 to 2014, the use of PFOA decreased by 60 percent.
Today we told you the bloody history of Teflon. Although they have more control today, the PFOA in Teflon and other products that many of us are likely to be exposed to can cause many serious health problems, including cancer, in high doses. If you want more of this kind of content, you can reach us in the comments section.
- Sources: Cancer, WebMD, Cancer Treatment Centers of America, EPA, ewg, Truthout, The New York Times
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