Exposure To PFAS Chemicals Could Cause Losses Worth Up To $63 Billion For U.S. Residents

Forever chemicals or per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) include over 4700 manufactured chemicals that are used in a wide range of consumer products. Since the 1940s till date, these chemicals have leached into the environment and are now omnipresent.

PFAS contaminates drinking water, the soil, rivers, and seas. They are present even in our daily food items. These forever chemicals are commonly used during the production process of upholstery, clothes, food containers and wrappers, shampoos, cosmetics, nonstick cooking utensils, and pizza boxes, according to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

In a new study published in the journal Exposure and Health, a group of researchers found that daily PFAS exposure has been associated with childhood obesity, cancer, and thyroid disease. This could potentially result in financial losses of at least $5.5 billion that might even rise to around $63 billion by the end of the current population’s lifetime.

The researchers analyzed the data of 5000 U.S. citizens and narrowed down 13 diseases that could potentially arise from long-term PFAS exposure. They were able to determine this with the help of the study participants’ blood samples that were collected in 2018. The participants included adults and children who were included in the U.S. National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey.

Other than that, the team delved into data that was published in several studies over the last 10 years that detailed all the diseases that have been associated with PFAS exposure.

This includes diabetes, endometriosis, and infertility. These severe conditions not only require extensive medical treatment and expenses but also drastically cut down an individual’s ability to work, resulting in substantial financial losses.

With the help of models that were used in prior investigations, the researchers then calculated the economic burden of diseases associated with PFAS exposure. They also took into consideration the diminishing worker productivity that results from chronic medical conditions linked to PFAS exposure like hypothyroidism, childhood obesity, and kidney cancer.

They found that childhood obesity results in the most significant economic burden of around $2.7 billion. Following that, hypothyroidism in women could cause losses worth at least $1.26 billion.

After factoring in other conditions like endometriosis and obesity during adulthood, the researchers estimated that the costs could shoot up to $63 billion.

“Our results strongly support the recent decision by the Environmental Protection Agency to lower the safe allowable level of these substances in water,” said Leonardo Trasande in a press release, who is a pediatrician at NYU Langone and one of the study authors.

“Based on our estimates, the cost of eradicating contamination and replacing this class of chemical with safer alternatives is ultimately justified when considering the tremendous economic and medical risks of allowing them to persist in the environment,” added Trasande in his statement.