Fetuses likely have more ‘forever chemicals’ in blood than thought – report

Fetuses likely have more ‘forever chemicals’ in blood than thought – report US test of 120 umbilical blood cord samples identified 42 Pfas compounds, which do not naturally break down Sign up for the Breaking News US email to get newsletter alerts in your inbox New peer-reviewed research shows fetuses likely have much higher levels of Pfas “forever chemicals” in their blood than previously thought. Testing of umbilical cord blood typically looks for a small number of common Pfas compounds, like Pfoa and Pfos. However, thousands of Pfas exist, and a new Mount Sinai study tested 120 umbilical blood cord samples that were previously found to contain up to four compounds. The expanded “non-targeted analysis” identified 42 Pfas compounds across the 120 samples, and the total level of Pfas in the blood was much higher than previously found. The findings suggest “babies are exposed to many more Pfas than we previously thought”, said Shelley Liu, a study co-author and associate professor at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai. “It’s particularly important to understand because it is a very vulnerable period when fetuses are exposed,” Liu added. Pfas are a class of about 15,000 compounds most frequently used to make products water-, stain- and grease-resistant. The chemicals have been linked to cancer, birth defects, decreased immunity, high cholesterol, kidney disease and a range of other serious health problems. They are dubbed “forever chemicals” because they do not naturally break down in the environment. Fetuses are widely exposed to Pfas via umbilical cord blood. A review of 40 studies found researchers had collectively detected Pfas in each of 30,000 umbilical cord blood samples they checked. Elevated Pfas levels in mothers is associated with higher infant mortality, as well as low birth weight and obesity later in life. Studies have also linked fetal exposure to cancer, neurological problems and cardiovascular disease later in life. The “legacy” compounds lik...