Thousands to be screened for affects from Teflon (drinking water/Dupont)

[HuckleB]

Thousands to be screened for affects from Teflon

http://www.news-medical.net/?id=11577

"After a federal scientific review panel said the chemical used to make teflon is "likely" to be carcinogenic to humans, tens of thousands of Ohio and West Virginia residents could be tested over the next year, to determine if their health has been affected by drinking water containing a chemical used to make the nonstick substance.

The screening will paid for by the DuPont the maker of the product following a class-action lawsuit. Teflon, one of the company's most popular products, can be found in everything from cookware and clothing to car parts and flooring.

The residents who receive their drinking water from six public water districts, or from private wells within the districts, where concentrations of ammonium perfluorooctanoate, also known as PFOA and C8, have been found, will be tested this month.

The water supplies which are near DuPont's Washington Works plant, are along the Ohio River near Parkersburg, an area where about 80,000 residents live.

..."

[Betsy Ross]

1. Aren't Teflon pans still on the market? n/t

[Cassandra]

2. I think Teflon itself is inert

It passes through your body. This is about pollution effects of one of the chemicals used to make it.

[napi21]

3. Yes, but the coating on the pan is not the problem.

Have you never heard "If the Teflon in a non-stick pan begins to chip or flake off, throw it away"?

As I understand it, the problem is the consumpsion of the Teflon itself, or some of the chemicals used to make it.

[Greybnk48]

4. Teflon coated pans are toxic!

Anyone who owns a parrot will tell you this, it has been known for years. Teflon pans, when heated emit a toxic gas that is fatal to parrots and birds. Bird cult people, myself included, have been trying for years to no avail to get the company to put a warning on the label for (new) bird owners. Their answer was that the pan has to be overheated, essentially burned, to emit the deadly gas. This claim was shown to be false on an expose done by one of those news shows (20/20, dateline, etc. don't remember which). I watched the show because I'm keep parrots. They showed that the gas was emitted in toxic levels during normal use, not just when the pan was overheated. But of course, so far nothing has been done.

Parrot people in the know have purged teflon from their homes, myself included years ago. But our concern is that this gas may harm infants and little children, not to mention adults over time. It causes a healthy parrot to drop off it's perch stone-cold dead if the parrot is positioned too close to the cooking area. This shit is not harmless!!