Teflon in candy wrappers?

[Kayakado]

Now I AM now officially freaked out! I never thought about teflon being in candy wrappers or chip bags????

I feel so naieve and clueless, avoiding teflon in cooking isn't enough.

I heard an NPR program the other day about a company that tests people's bodies for toxins. They had tested Ted Turner, his daughter and grandchild and were interviewing his daughter.

Ted had high levels of mercury and lead (suspected mercury source: fish, suspected lead source: his old house)

Daughter had high levels of synthetic musk from cosmetics and healthcare products.

Grandchild had high levels of teflon and flame retardant

Suspected source for teflon: food wrappers on greasy food, appears the packaging is coated with it.

Suspeced source for flamer-retardent-- children's clothing, they are absorbing it through their skin.

Edited June 24, 2012 by Kayakado (log)

[tanstaafl2]

Perfluorochemicals, the general class of chemicals that includes teflon and coatings on food wrappers, is now pretty much ubiquitous in western society and probably can be found in people (and many animals as well) in practically every corner of the globe for that matter.

Essentially everyone in the US has some level of PFCs in their system with the average level of PFOA in the blood serum in the US according to the most recent CDC NHANES data (page 180) at 4.12 ug/L (equivalent to parts per billion).

Like cockroaches, it's everywhere!

Edited June 24, 2012 by tanstaafl2 (log)

[Lindacakes]

I for one am glad that perfume finally got a hit. I'm finding myself increasingly sensitive to it and when you dig in you find that perfume manufacturers aren't obligated to disclose what's in the fluid you are applying directly to your skin, right on the veins. Trade secret. Trade secrets that contain numerous known carcinogens. Perfumes are now engineered to project -- an attribute that comes at a chemical price -- so that the wearer isn't aware that she's punching everyone in her strike zone in the lungs. Him, too, since there's increasing advertising aimed at stirring male insecurity and thus spending.

Everywhere, yes, but you can make choices about your exposure when you are aware of what's going on. Most people are clueless.

Nice word, biopersistent. I can't believe how persistent microwave popcorn bags are . . . Getting harder and harder to find just plain popcorn.

[paulraphael]

There are many things in the world to be worried about. Teflon isn't one of them (unless you're a bird, and someone's incinerating a non-stick pan in the next room). PTFE is so innert in the human body that it's used in permanent installations, like artificial joints, artificial heart valves, and vascular grafts.

The only reason to avoid teflon in cooking is that it's a lousy surface for 95% of cooking. If you're cooking eggs, or very delicate fish, it's perfectly fine.

You will die of something one day, and it almost certainly won't be your omelet pan or potato chip bag. The chips themselves might be a culprit.