6 household items that could be messing with your fertility

Another surprising fact about environmental toxins. And this time we’ll talk about… dental floss (and some other items at the end of this article).

If you’re anything like me, you probably love when the floss is very smooth and glides perfectly in the tight spots between your teeth. 

But do you know what gives the floss this sense of smooth glide? PFAS chemical, in easier words - Teflon. PFAS is a chemical used in Teflon and other non-stick cookware. And if you haven’t heard about the big lawsuit of Dupont factory, Teflon manufacturer - you might want to check it out. 

PFAS is a toxic chemical that’s linked to many health complications, including cancer, infertility, birth defects and abnormalities, low infant birth weight, weak immune system and hormonal imbalances. It is also a forever chemical, meaning once it enters your body - it never leaves, it doesn’t break down and can accumulate over time. 

PFAS’s been in use since the 1940’s and the harmful effects of this toxin were discovered through Dupont. You’d think once they discovered it’s toxic they’d announce and stop using it. Unfortunately, that wasn’t the case. The factory continued to use this toxic chemical KNOWINGLY for over 20 years causing damage to their workers, children of their workers, customers who used their products, people who lived nearby the factory. It took thousands of injuries, years of research through legal actions to prove this fact. Dupont already paid millions of dollars for injuries and some of the lawsuits are still going on. If you want to learn more about this case I highly recommend watching the movie ‘Dark Waters’. It shows how when it comes to big money - our health is not really at their bet interest. 

Since then (2015), certain types of PFAS chemicals have been banned from use in US but still used internationally (the most researched ones were banned, PFOA and PFOS, but other forms are still in use).

PFAS can be found in many products, but the most important ones to replace are those that come in direct contact with your body through ingestion:

Fast food packaging - simply avoid these foods as much as possible. I think it’s unnecessary to say that they’re bad for your health even if they were packed in the most natural materials.  

Dental floss - switch to no Teflon, natural wax dental floss options. Yes they are less smooth, yes they’re more expensive. But I think you realize that swallowing these toxic chemicals into your body, knowing that they never leave it might do good to your bank account, but definitely not to your health. 

Non-stick cookware - opt out for stainless steel, enamel or cast iron cookware. Make sure you research the brand you’re buying from, for example cheap stainless steel products can still have toxic chemicals that leach into your food while cooking. It’s worth investing in high quality cookware since it will serve you for many years.  Keep in mind if you have a non-stick cookware purchased before 2015 it most likely contains the banned toxins in them.

Parchment paper - how do you think they get this non-stick effect? I personally recommend to go for stainless steel cookware and use butter or oil for seasoning - as we did in old days. Regular parchment paper often also contains chlorine. If you still occasionally need to use parchment paper - make sure to buy the non-bleached one. 

Waterproof mascara - not related to ingestion, but can easily escape into your body through the eye contact. Teflon is not used in all of them, but to be on a safe side check your brand or use regular mascara. 

In our modern life we can’t have control over every possible chemical that enters our body. But the reality is - toxicity overload these days is high as never before. Therefore going for ‘greener’ options when you have the opportunity to do so is a very smart choice. Research shows that many of the chemical and heavy metals can be inherited by our children, that’s why keeping your life as much toxins-free as possible is very important. Remember - knowledge is power and it’s not meant to scare you, but to give you the opportunity to make better choice for you and your health.