|
Environmental Working Group’s Green Salon
PFCs: Do you have it in you?
Environmental Working Group (EWG) supporters gathered at D.C.’s premier organic
eatery, Restaurant Nora, to mingle with experts and learn more about a relatively
unknown family of toxins known as perfluorochemicals (PFCs) at one of the group’s
Green Salons in November. PFCs are highly slippery heat-stable compounds found
in ScotchGard, Gore-Tex and other products used to repel stains and water— they
are ubiquitous in everything from airplanes to household cleaners to fast food
packaging. Research shows that PFCs are highly persistent and toxic pollutants
of human blood and wildlife throughout the world. Chemical giant DuPont is
currently involved in a lawsuit with the Environmental Protection Agency for illegally
suppressing health and water pollution data on Perfluorooctanoic Acid (PFOA), a
synthetic PFC used in the manufacture of Teflon. Guests at EWG’s Green Salon
also had the opportunity to have their blood sent to be screened for the levels of 11
PFCs as well as mercury, a toxic metal commonly found in seafood. Between 96-98
percent of Americans test positive for PFCs.
|
