
According to the U.S. Food & Drug Administration (FDA), per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, or PFAS are used for a wide variety of products. The list of products that could potentially contain PFAS can be daunting because it seems to affect all areas of life: Indoors and outdoors, eating and drinking, personal hygiene, and cleaning:
- Contaminated Water: Drinking from municipal tap water in affected areas, or from well water in affected areas could lead to high exposure of PFAS.
- Seafood: Certain types of fish, like tilapia, according to the FDA, might have been caught from water that was contaminated by PFAS.
- Soil: PFAS can also contaminate the soil your food is grown in.
- Food packaging: Certain food packages, like anti-stick coatings for paper and foam boxes, could contain higher-than-usual levels of PFAS.
- Consumer-level cookware: Non-stick pans and food containers may use PFAS.
- Household Chemicals: Certain stain and water-resistant chemicals are known to contain PFAS. Additionally, lower exposure of PFAS may come from house paints.
- Personal Hygiene Products: The Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR) says products like shampoo, floss, nail polish, and eye makeup can contain PFAS.
This is a non-exhaustive list of potential household products that could contain PFAS. These products do not put you at equal risk of exposure to PFAS, but they should be considered regardless.
When PFAS contaminate drinking water, it can be due to the overuse of industrial chemicals that contain them and become mixed in the runoff.
Background of PFAS Used in Household Products
PFAS are intentionally used in consumer products like non-stick cookware and stain and water-repellant fabrics. However, even if you do not use these products, the risk of contamination naturally arises in waterways and the soil of communities where products with PFAS are used. Simply knowing what household products contain PFAS will not entirely eliminate your risk of exposure to the chemical.
Effects of Household Products Containing PFAS
It is possible to mitigate your risk of negative effects of PFAS exposure, but not entirely if you have already been exposed.
The most obvious risk of PFAS exposure is in drinking affected waters, especially in areas with high levels of firefighting foam runoff. Currently, the ATSDR lists 10 regions throughout the United States in which the effects of PFAS on human health are being tested and studied.
The science is not conclusive surrounding the health effects of how we ingest PFAS. However, animal research shows that high exposure to PFAS has some consistently negative impacts on health. These may include the following:
- Cancer (bladder, blood, kidney, liver, pancreatic, prostate, testicular, thyroid)
- Low birth weights
- Preeclampsia
- Thyroid (hyperthyroidism, hypothyroidism, thyroiditis, Hashimoto’s, Grave’s, Goiter, thyroid nodules)
- Ulcerative colitis
The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) says an additional health concern from exposure to high levels of PFAS is to fetuses and infants. PFAS exposure could result in low birth weights, skeletal problems, accelerated puberty, and more.
While both organizations cite only high levels of PFAS posing a threat to human health, the current lack of government regulation on safe levels makes this an ongoing issue. While some of the riskiest PFAS have been largely pulled out of mainstream manufacturing, new PFAS are still being developed. Millions of people are taking legal action against negligent corporations through class action lawsuits.
Negligent Corporations Face PFAS Class Action Lawsuits
Most Americans have been exposed to PFAS. The issue they face now is universally rising healthcare costs, especially with the unmitigated risks of PFAS in everyday household products. The worst risks of PFAS exposure have yet to be discovered or regulated.
However, people who have gotten sick are joining class-action lawsuits to receive compensation from companies and municipalities that knowingly used and sold products with PFAS contamination. When a company does not warn the user of the negative effects PFAS can have on the human body, they can be considered responsible for any health conditions the customer develops.
If you believe you became ill due to PFAS exposure from household products, you could be entitled to compensation for expenses such as:
- Medical costs and future medical costs
- Transportation costs
- Pain and suffering
- Mental anguish
- Loss of consortium
- Lost wages and future lost wages
- Lost earning potential
This is not a full list of compensation you might be entitled to. Do not wait to be devastated by increasing medical costs over chronic health issues that could have been prevented. Speak with the team at Pintas & Mullins Law Firm about your PFAS household products case today at (800) 788-4155.