Nonstick cookware: you don't need to toss them
But use properly to avoid the production of potentially harmful PFAS
5 minute read
Imagine, you’re about to make a delicious cake and are placing the batter in your pan. After baking, the spongey cake plops right out with ease with little to no damage to the cake itself. That is all due to a non-stick coating known as Teflon.
The brand name is Teflon, but the chemical coating itself is polytetrafluoroethylene or PTFE. PTFE) is a fluoropolymer with good insulating properties, nonreactivity, hydrophobicity, and a low coefficient of friction, all of which make it an ideal substance for non-stick coating on cookware. PTFE itself is also chemically inert, nonflammable, and nontoxic. PTFE is also used for coating the inside of containers, eyeglasses, and shaving blades.
Teflon itself isn’t harmful as it is non-toxic to humans, but misusing cookware by either superheating it or damaging the non-stick coating can pose a potential risk. When PTFE is superheated, it can disintegrate and release gases that may be toxic. Inhaling the fumes can cause polymer fume fever (this is rare with regard to home cooking). However, another consideration is a byproduct of PTFE as it burns are the production of chemicals known as perfluorooctanoic acids (PFOAs).
PFOAs or perfluorooctanoic acids (C8) are man-made chemicals that are used to create PTFE and have been credited with negatively affecting both the environment and human health. PFOAs are part of a larger group of chemicals known as perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS). PFOA is a man-made chemical that persists in the human body at low levels and can be found everywhere: people, water, and the environment. Other PFAS of potential concern are PFOSs (perfluorooctane sulfonate), Perfluorobutane sulfonic acid (PFBS), and GenX (a newer chemical) that act similarly. PFAS are used in almost every industry, including aerospace, automotive, construction, electronics, and military. While PFOA and PFOS are not longer used in the US, they were replaced by GenX, which has similar properties.
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