Chemical in Teflon a likely Carcinogen

[Lebenz]

Last month, the EPA asked the eight U.S. companies that use PFOA to virtually eliminate public exposure to the chemical. The companies were expected to comply with the voluntary measure, cutting releases from their plants and products by 95 percent over the next four years and completely soon after that. The move was is considered the EPA's most aggressive effort to restrict an industrial compound in more than 15 years, when it enacted a regulation banning asbestos.

The article: http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/nationworld/2002808452_teflon16.html

Oh great I owe my wife an apology, she refuses to cook with teflon pans or griddles and I hand her the tin foil and instructions on how to make a hat. Eating Crow ain't fun.

[Maroon 300D]

Is the EPA just now figuring out that teflon is bad??? I thought this was pretty much common knowledge. The use of teflon-coated pans has been known to kill caged birds who are near by. Kinda like a canary in a coal mine.

[R Leo]

Originally Posted by MedMech

Eating Crow ain't fun.

Cold, crow's no good. It's better warmed on a (Teflon™) griddle.

[Kuan]

Two different concerns here. THe first we knew about for a while now, that overheating Teflon kills birds and causes Teflon fever.

The second is that PFOA, used in the manufacture of PTFE and other fluoro products, is cancer causing.

[Hatterasguy]

Everything give you cancer. Let me guess if you eat 5 pounds of Teflan every year for 30 years you may or may not get cancer.

[Maroon 300D]

Originally Posted by Kuan

Two different concerns here. THe first we knew about for a while now, that overheating Teflon kills birds and causes Teflon fever.

The second is that PFOA, used in the manufacture of PTFE and other fluoro products, is cancer causing.

Well thanks for clearing that up.

I don't understand why anyone would really want teflon cookware anyway. Materials like cast iron and enamel tend to do a better job of heating the food, and in my experience they have better non-stick qualities anyway. It is also too easy to burn the teflon off, so you will probably eat some of it and the pans won't last.

It seems to me that here in the states, people know very little about cooking and probably purchase teflon simply because they lack information about cookware. Most of them are probably eating corn dogs and hot pockets most of the time anyway!

I suppose a set of teflon pans is cheaper than a set of cast iron ones or something high-end like Le Creuset, but that reminds me of a Ukrainian woman I know whose mother used to tell her they were too poor to buy cheap things.

Originally Posted by Hatterasguy

Everything give you cancer. Let me guess if you eat 5 pounds of Teflan every year for 30 years you may or may not get cancer.

The point is I don't want my kids to get cancer @ thirty. If this is true teflon cooking products should be pulled asap IMO.

[Zeus]

The article seems a tad alarmist in its approach. It states that perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA) - a chemical used in the manufacture of, among other things, Teflon - is a potential carcinogen.

For all we know, it could be a by-product of Teflon production, a catalyst, etc. The concern probably lies more with those who work with the manufacturing of Teflon and the associated products, and who risk exposure to the chemical in its native state.

Smoking a cigarette probably does more harm than licking a Teflon pan.

Just MHO.

EDIT: Unless the pan is hot.

[Nate]

Untill the EPA bans cigarettes, I refuse to listen to them about cancer causing agents... O wait, cigs make money, so I guess its OK for people to smoke them.............

One heck of an alarmest approach, but I think the choice should be to consumers what they use or dont. Its a "possible" carcinigin (sp), just like the brake cleaner.

On that note, at the local farm and barn, they have two kinds of brake dust cleaner. One's "enviormently friendly" and apparently contains no carciningins. The other isnt...

Guess which one doesnt work very good, and is alot more $$ per can (.75ish)

The epa sucks
~Nate

[peragro]

Teflon and like chemicals have to be heated past the 600F mark to offgas the chemicals in question below this temp they are very inactive - hence the non stick bit. Not really the temp you get to when cooking. More protection for the "environment" from EPA.

http://www.acsh.org/healthissues/newsID.1017/healthissue_detail.asp

[Nate]

Once again, the EPA sucks

~Nate

[sfloriII]

I use regular All-Clad anyway. But non-stick is nice for the cleanup!

[MS Fowler]

More junk science?
Teflon has been in wide use for what, 40 years?!
How many people whose death can be tied to possible teflon causes?

Why doesn't the EPA concentrate on something useful?
The EPA is the agency that REQUIRED the addition of MTBE ( methyltertiarybutylether) to gasoline in metro areas to decrease pollution. MTBE is not a potential, possible carcinogen. It is known to cause cancer. And THEY required it!
It has leaked into the ground water from some gas station, polluting the wells. ( Guess who gets sued to pay for the damages--not the EPA)
The EPA just rescinded their order to use it.
That God for the EPA; I am glad they are looking out for my well-being!!!

[GottaDiesel]

I've been moving away from teflon... nothing cooks like good old stainless steel w/and copper. (Ok, Iron is awesome)... no more teflon for me. The news in this thread is old, but still true. If you can afford it, dump the teflon and go back to tradional stainless (with copper is great too) and iron cooking... the food tastes better and you'll be healthier.

Pete