7/22/11 High blood levels of a chemical used in non-stick and stain-resistant coatings for pots and pans, furniture, clothing and other widely used products have been linked to an increased risk of osteoarthritis in a study of people exposed to contaminated drinking water.
Those with the highest levels of this chemical – perfluorooctanoate, or PFOA – in their bodies were 40 percent more likely to have osteoarthritis, or OA, than those in the study who had the lowest levels.
On the other hand, blood levels of a sister compound called perfluorooctane sulfonate, or PFOS, were inversely associated with OA – that is, the higher the blood levels, the less likelihood of having OA.
“While our findings suggest exposure to these chemicals may be linked to osteoarthritis risk, no conclusions regarding cause and effect can be drawn due to the cross-sectional nature of the study. Clearly, more research is warranted,” explains lead author Kim Innes, PhD, an associate professor at the School of Medicine at West Virginia University in Morgantown, in an email.
The study, which was recently published online in the American Journal of Epidemiology, included almost 50,000 adults who lived in six different districts in West Virginia and Ohio where water was contaminated with PFOA and PFOS by a DuPont Chemical plant. These people participated in a 2001 class-action lawsuit against DuPont and were being monitored as part of a 2004 settlement.
PFOA and PFOS are organic pollutants that, once released, persist in the environment and remain in the human body for several years. Study participants were given a full health survey and had blood measurements of levels of PFOA, PFOS and other chemicals. The participants also provided a full medical history, including physician diagnosis of OA.
Nearly 8 percent of the participants were found to have OA. The connection between PFOA and OA was strongest in younger people and non-obese people.
This study does not show a direct cause and effect. However, Innes says, “If these associations [for PFOA and PFOS] are confirmed in large prospective studies in people free of osteoarthritis at baseline, public health implications could be substantial, given the high prevalence and costs of this disorder.”
“The study is important, because toxicity studies of chemicals do not necessarily look at the effects on joints first,” commented Robin Poole, PhD, scientific director emeritus of the Canadian Arthritis Network, A National Centre of Excellence. Any effect – direct or indirect – on arthritis may be missed if the joints are not the first priority when looking at the pathology of chemicals, Poole says.
At this point in time, specific recommendations regarding PFOA would be premature, Innes says, “but it is always wise to limit exposure to any known environmental pollutant, as many, including PFOA, may have negative effects on human health.”
pot/pans. I was diagnosed with Lupus at 22 yrs old
and FM at 32. Is there a connection? Also, we
moved to a small unincorporated town (Bermuda Dunes, Ca) and we have horrible water. It
has ruined our solid brass fixtures, granite
counters surrounding faucets and shower faucets.
It makes anything that was wet and than dries (wash
cloths etc.) smell horrible. Any connection?
Where do we go for help re: water? It's tested
by the company and they say it's fine.
Any suggestions?
There were lawsuits filed against DOW Chemical a number of years back by female employees who claimed birth defects linked to inordinate industrial exposure.
I feel the huge upsurge in chronic degenerative and fatigue-inducing diseases is tied to our increasingly polluted environment. Chemicals that are used in cookware, on crops and in cleaning products are not tested for their interactions with one another, only in isolation and often only in animal models. Currently, we are also seeing nicotine-based pesticides threatening bee populations, too, which will only lead to more crop failures.
In addition, much of the water in the United States is contaminated, ranking somewhere on a 1-3 level out of 10, with 10 being the purist. The water purity and the largely unregulated and unlabeled process of Genetically Modified Foods (GMO) needs to be front and center public health issues. Many of these substances in our food and water are neurotoxic or carcinogenic. They contribute to the huge upsurge in diabetes (BPA in plastics), cancer, asthma/allergies and auto-immune disorders. All the while, our factory farming methods are contributing to antibiotic resistance first in the animal populations and then in the adults, leading to bacterial infections that are increasingly problematic to treat for the first time in over 50 years.
In short, we must confront what has happened to our environment, of which we are a part, over the past 60-some years. When many of these chemical industries and agricultural practices began consumers and early adopters had very little knowledge of the dangers. Now we know and yet painfully little is done to reverse the cumulative damage to our environment and our immune systems. We must put an end to this ignorance so that our children and grandchildren can enjoy the health their grandparents did. It's going to take public awareness to change things but it can be done if we educate and empower ourselves.
Kangen water and any other alkaline/ionized water treatment is bunk, a hoax, a scam, snake oil, if you will. Do not be taken in by skilled grifters trying to sell you these silly remedies and useless products. Some websites below that reveal the lies and fraud that is alkaline/ionized water treatments.
http://www.chem1.com/CQ/ionbunk.html
http://junkfoodscience.blogspot.com/2007/06/secrets-out-how-to-reverse-agin g-and.html
http://www.quackwatch.org/01QuackeryRelatedTopics/DSH/coral2.html
There are too many debunking sites and articles out there to list but I encourage investigation of the science on these treatments not the sales pitch.
I would just like to get rid of my osteoarthritis, especially since most of mine is not from wear and tear.
The first post by Grant is right. We need to change our ways. What we eat, drink and put on our skin needs to be good for us. Most of the diseases we have created by eating the wrong things and not exercising at all.
Look up non-stick coatings and health concerns.
(Knee replacments for two of my family members)
We have all use Teflon cookwear along with the cooking sprays.
My Arthrisis is getting worse with age everyday....My sister, brother and I are in our mid 50's
My brother passed away of cancer. Many of the people I knew have suffered from auto immune issues, cancer or have passed.
I want to know more about this topic. How do I get myself tested? How do I get the water tested where I am living now?
This is interesting and disturbing!
So, is this study still going on? Have participants subsequently developed OA after 2004?
Extremely interesting.
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