What have we done to the kids?
By THE UNIVERSITY OF BERGEN
PFAS, or per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, are man-made chemicals used in a wide range of consumer goods like clothing, makeup, paints, and non-stick cookware.
Their robust resistance to breaking
down results in an accumulation of various types of PFAS both in the
environment and within the human body. The primary avenues of PFAS exposure for
people are through tainted food and contaminated drinking water.
Several negative health effects have been associated with PFAS exposure, including reduced vaccine response in children, reduced birth weight, and certain types of cancers.
Reduced vaccine response in
children was the basis for the safety limit set by the European Food and Safety
Authority (EFSA) in 2020. Several European countries are now working together
to restrict the production and use of all PFAS in Europe.
As part of “the Bergen Growth Study 2” from 2016, researchers at the University of Bergen collected blood samples from children aged 6-16 years for PFAS analyses. Four PFAS were present in all children.
In addition, 22% of the children had PFAS levels above the safety
limits set by EFSA, indicating a potential risk of negative health effects.
This is in line with findings in other European and Norwegian studies.
Reference: “Levels of per- and
polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) in Norwegian children stratified by age and
sex – Data from the Bergen Growth Study 2” by Ingvild Halsør Forthun, Mathieu
Roelants, Line Småstuen Haug, Helle Katrine Knutsen, Lawrence M. Schell,
Astanand Jugessur, Robert Bjerknes, Azemira Sabaredzovic, Ingvild Særvold
Bruserud and Petur Benedikt Juliusson, 7 June 2023, International Journal of Hygiene and Environmental Health.
DOI: 10.1016/j.ijheh.2023.114199