Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) or synthetic chemicals have been detected endlessly Arctic ice And his polar bear Penguin colonies in TasmaniaEven me Rain water And Sea spray. These have been present in continuous chemicals. The blood of the people All over the world in addition to amongst humans Cat's milk. Indeed, our team has crushed them. International Space Station.
But not much is understood about how PFAS gets into our bodies. Possible routes include ingestion of air contaminated with PFAS particles (food, water and other products containing PFAS). Our recent research shows that it is feasible for PFAS to penetrate human skin and reach our blood.
PFASs are present in many consumer products, including Skin care products, Cosmetics And Waterproof clothing. These compounds are sometimes called “permanent chemicals” due to their nature and persistence within the human body where they'll reside. many years.
Our latest study shows that dermal exposure—the absorption of PFAS through the skin—could also be a very important pathway into the human body. Using 3D models of lab-grown human skin tissue that mimic the properties of real human skin, our team of environmental chemists measured the dermal permeation (the discharge of chemicals through our skin) of 17 different PFAS chemicals. Investigated.
Our results suggest for the primary time that lots of these compounds could be absorbed into human skin, contrary to what was previously thought in regards to the skin. Acting as a barrier.
Odini Ragnarsdottir, CC BY-ND
Once within the body, these chemicals can affect our health. Some PFAS disrupt the hormone system and might reduce the immune response to childhood vaccines against diseases comparable to Diphtheria. There are other related effects. Low birth weight of newborns And changes in Liver function. A PFAS (perfluorooctanoic acid or PFOA) was recently designated by the International Agency for Research on Cancer. “Carcinogenic to humans”.
Consequently, many the study has focused on quantifying our exposure to PFAS, with recent research revealing food and drinking water because the fundamental routes of human exposure to those chemicals.
For our study, we chosen 17 PFAS which are already regulated by the EU. Drinking water. Our results make clear human exposure to those 17 specific chemicals, but extrapolating our findings to other PFAS is difficult because each compound has different properties and behaviors.
Short v long
Our results showed that long-chain PFAS weren't absorbed through the skin in addition to short-chain PFAS with fewer carbon molecules. So 58% of the applied dose of a PFAS called perfluoropentanoic acid (containing five carbon molecules) was absorbed by the tip of the 36-hour exposure period. However, for essentially the most highly regulated test of PFAS, PFOA (a chemical containing eight carbons), only 13 percent of the applied dose penetrated the skin throughout the same period.
We also found that it takes a while for the PFAS within the study to spread through the skin. However, since these compounds are present in products used on daily basis, such repeated contact can result in substantial exposure. over time.
It was previously hypothesized that under the conditions found on the surface of our skin, absorption of the PFAS we tested could be minimal. However, our study shows that this shouldn't be the case, as for the eight tested PFAS, greater than 5% of the applied dose was capable of fully penetrate the bloodstream through the skin. We also found a significant slice of the applied food throughout the skin, which represents a reservoir of PFAS that may later pass into our bodies.
Our study helps us understand how significant PFAS exposure through the skin could be and identifies which chemical structures are most readily absorbed. This is vital because we see a shift in industry to chemicals with shorter chain lengths because they're regarded as less toxic or less persistent.
But the trade-off could also be that we absorb more of those short-chain PFASs because these smaller chemicals move more easily through the skin barrier. Manufacturers and regulators must make sure of the risks involved before putting products containing PFAS available on the market.