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JOHN: THERE'S A CLASS OF TOXIC

CHEMICALS SO PERVASIVE THAT THEY

ARE FOUND IN FOOD, SOIL, WATER,

AND IN THE BLOOD OF MOST PEOPLE

IN AMERICA.

EARLIER THIS MONTH, THE EPA

PROPOSED THE FIRST-EVER

REGULATORY STANDARD TO LIMIT THE

QUANTITY ALLOWED IN DRINKING

WATER.

ALI ROGIN LOOKS AT THE GROWING

HEALTH CONCERNS ABOUT THESE

CHEMICALS.

ALI: PFAS, SOMETIMES CALLED

FOREVER CHEMICALS, REPEL FIRE,

WATER, OIL AND STAINS AND HAVE

BEEN USED SINCE THE 1940S IN A

WIDE VARIETY OF EVERYDAY

PRODUCTS.

YOU CAN FIND THEM IN NONSTICK

COOKWARE, FAST FOOD WRAPPERS,

CLOTHES, AND COSMETICS.

BUT THESE MAN MADE CHEMICALS

DON'T BREAK DOWN EASILY, AND A

NUMBER OF THEM HAVE BEEN LINKED

TO SERIOUS HEALTH PROBLEMS.

FOR MORE ON THEIR IMPACT, WE

TURN TO ERIN BELL.

SHE'S AN ENVIRONMENTAL

EPIDEMIOLOGIST AT THE STATE

UNIVERSITY OF NEW YORK AT ALBANY

WHO STUDIES HUMAN EXPOSURE TO

THESE TOXINS.

ERIN, THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR

JOINING US.

JUST HOW WIDESPREAD ARE THESE

CHEMICALS?

ERIN: THESE CHEMICALS HAVE BEEN

DETECTED IN THE DRINKING WATER

AND SOIL IN EVERY STATE OF THE

UNITED STATES, AND IT IS ALSO

BEING DETECTED IN MANY COUNTRIES

ACROSS THE WORLD.

A NUMBER OF HEALTH CONCERNS ARE

RELATED TO EXPOSURE TO THESE

CHEMICALS.

THEY INCLUDE IMPACT ON THE

IMMUNE SYSTEM.

FOLKS WITH HIGHER EXPOSURES

ARE MORE LIKELY TO HAVE THYROID

CHANGES, CHANGES IN KIDNEY

FUNCTION, AS WELL AS HIGHER

CHOLESTEROL.

WE'RE ALSO CONCERNED ABOUT

IMPACTS ON CHILDREN WITH REGARDS

TO LOW BIRTH WEIGHT AND

NEURODEVELOPMENT IN THOSE

CHILDREN.

AND THERE ARE A NUMBER OF OTHER

HEALTH OUTCOMES WHERE THE

LITERATURE IS MORE MIXED.

WE SOMETIMES SEE AN ASSOCIATION,

OTHER TIMES WE SEE LESS OF AN

ASSOCIATION AND WE HAVE MORE

WORK TO DO.

THESE WOULD INCLUDE INFERTILITY

FACTORS AROUND ULCERATIVE

COLITIS AND OTHER AUTOIMMUNE

DISEASES.

ALI: AND ARE THESE THINGS THAT

PEOPLE CAN DETERMINE BY TAKING A

BLOOD TEST?

I MEAN, HOW HOW DOES ONE TEST TO

SEE WHERE THEIR LEVELS ARE?

ERIN: THAT'S CORRECT.

SO FOR EACH INDIVIDUAL, WE

MEASURE CONCENTRATIONS IN THEIR

BLOOD, AND THAT IS THE BEST WAY

TO DETERMINE THE INDIVIDUAL

LEVEL OF EXPOSURE FOR PEOPLE WHO

HAVE LIVED IN COMMUNITIES OR

FOR PEOPLE IN OCCUPATIONS THAT

HAVE THESE HIGHER EXPOSURES.

UNFORTUNATELY, THERE'S NO

CONSISTENT GUIDANCE OR COVERAGE

FROM INSURANCE COMPANIES FOR

TESTING FOR PFAS IN YOUR BLOOD.

IF YOU CONTACT YOUR LOCAL HEALTH

DEPARTMENT, THEY WILL LET YOU

KNOW IF THERE ARE PROGRAMS AT

THE STATE LEVEL SPONSORED

THROUGH STATE HEALTH

DEPARTMENTS, IF THEY HAVE

OPPORTUNITIES FOR YOU TO GET

TESTED.

BUT THIS IS A SITUATION THAT

WE'RE STILL WORKING ON IN TERMS

OF MAKING SURE THERE'S COVERAGE

FOR PEOPLE TO GET TESTED IF THEY

WISH TO KNOW WHAT THEIR LEVELS

ARE.

ALI: NOW, THE EPA, AS WE

MENTIONED IN THE INTRODUCTION,

IS PROPOSING A NEW REGULATION

PERTAINING TO PFAS IN WATER.

CAN YOU EXPLAIN WHAT EXACTLY

THIS PROPOSAL WOULD DO?

ERIN: THERE ARE 12,000 CHEMICALS

IN THE FAMILY OF PFAS.

THE EPA HAS SUGGESTED THAT FOR

SIX OF THESE CHEMICALS, THERE

SHOULD BE A STANDARD FEDERAL

RULE THAT WOULD REQUIRE THAT

WATER UTILITIES TEST FOR THESE

SIX CHEMICALS.

AND IF THEY WERE ABOVE A CERTAIN

LEVEL, THAT THOSE LEVELS BE

MONITORED FOR AND COMPANIES BE

REQUIRED TO REDUCE THEIR

EXPOSURE IN THE WATER UTILITY.

ALI: NOW SIX OUT OF 12,000

DOESN'T SOUND LIKE A LOT.

ARE WE MISSING SOMETHING HERE?

ARE THESE VERY SIGNIFICANT

VERSIONS OF THESE CHEMICALS?

ERIN: SO THAT'S AN EXCELLENT

QUESTION.

AND THIS IS ONE OF THE

CHALLENGES WE HAVE IN THE FIELD.

OUT OF THE 12,000, WE'VE

OBVIOUSLY STUDIED VERY FEW OF

THEM.

SO THESE SIX ARE PARTICULARLY OF

CONCERN BECAUSE WE KNOW THE MOST

ABOUT THEM.

WE ALSO HAVE DETECTED THEM IN

HIGHER LEVELS IN DRINKING WATER

ACROSS THE COUNTRY.

HOWEVER, IT IS QUITE LITERALLY A

DROP IN THE BUCKET.

IT IS JUST A VERY SMALL NUMBER.

THERE IS CONCERN IN THE

SCIENTIFIC COMMUNITY THAT WE

WILL NEVER CATCH UP IN TERMS OF

UNDERSTANDING WHAT THE HEALTH

EFFECTS ARE FOR THE MUCH LARGER

GROUP OF PFAS'S.

ALI: HOW IS IT THAT THESE

COMPANIES ARE ABLE TO CONTINUE

TO MANUFACTURE PRODUCTS WITH

THESE DANGEROUS CHEMICALS IN

THEM?

ERIN: SO HISTORICALLY, WHEN WE

TALK ABOUT ENVIRONMENTAL

EXPOSURES AND REMOVING THEM FROM

PRODUCTION, WE FOCUS ON THEIR

PERSISTENCE.

THEY STAY IN THE ENVIRONMENT AND

IN OUR BODIES FOR A VERY LONG

TIME.

THE NEWER VERSIONS ARE NOT AS

LONG LASTING IN THE ENVIRONMENT,

HOWEVER, BECAUSE THEY ARE

STRUCTURALLY DESIGNED TO IN

ESSENCE DO THE SAME THING THAT

MADE THEM GOOD FOR PRODUCTION

AND FOR OUR CONSUMER PRODUCTS.

THEY'RE STILL RELATED TO SOME OF

THESE ADVERSE HEALTH OUTCOMES.

SO THEY'RE STILL BEING USED

BECAUSE WE HAVE NOT REGULATED

THEM AND WE STILL REQUIRE THEM

IN THE MANUFACTURING PROCESS.

AND UNTIL THOSE RULES AND LAWS

CHANGE, THEN THAT WILL BE

ALLOWED TO HAPPEN.

ALI: SO MY UNDERSTANDING IS THAT

THIS EPA RULE, IF IT IS

APPROVED, IS STILL GOING TO TAKE

A FEW YEARS BEFORE IT'S FULLY

OPERATIONAL.

SO WHAT KIND OF THINGS CAN

PEOPLE DO IF THEY WANT TO BEGIN

REDUCING THEIR EXPOSURE NOW?

ERIN: THERE ARE A NUMBER OF

THINGS THAT PEOPLE CAN DO AND

COMMUNITIES CAN DO.

THE FIRST IS AWARENESS.

PLEASE BE SURE AND KEEP MINDFUL

OF WHAT MIGHT BE GOING ON IN

YOUR COMMUNITY, ESPECIALLY IN

THE DRINKING WATER.

IF YOU ARE NOT SURE WHAT THE

LEVELS OF PFAS ARE IN YOUR

DRINKING WATER, YOU CAN CONTACT

YOUR LOCAL WATER UTILITY, YOUR

STATE HEALTH DEPARTMENT, AS WELL

AS ANY UNIVERSITY OR COLLEGE

RESEARCHERS THAT ARE IN THE

AREA.

IN TERMS OF REDUCTION, WE CAN

USE FILTERS ON OUR WATER SYSTEMS

AND IN OUR HOMES.

YOU ALSO WANT TO BE MINDFUL OF

WHAT YOU USE ON AN INDIVIDUAL

BASIS.

AGAIN, MINIMIZING FAST FOOD

WRAPPERS, THE WRAPPERS ARE LINED

WITH THESE MATERIALS AS WELL AS

MICROWAVE POPCORN IS ANOTHER

EXAMPLE.

POTS AND PANS HAVE THESE LININGS

.

AS THEY BECOME SCRATCHED THE

PFAS CAN LEACH INTO THE FOOD AND

CAUSE US MORE EXPOSURE.

SO AGAIN, BE MINDFUL OF THAT.

AND AS YOU REPLACE THEM WITH

THINGS THAT ARE NONSTICK WITH

THAT DON'T HAVE THE NONSTICK

CHEMICALS OR HAVE THE OTHER

TYPES OF COATINGS ON THEM THAT

WOULD POTENTIALLY HAVE THESE

CHEMICALS.

ALI: ERIN BELL WITH SUNY ALBANY,

THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR YOUR TIME.

ERIN: THANK YOU.