PFASt and loose – an illustrated primer for normal people

Author: Ali Ling

  • Testing for PFAS in my blood

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    Ali Ling
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    I did a home test for PFAS in my blood. Here are the general steps: 1. Open and organize the kit contents and label your sample containers with your info and contact info. This required a bit of patience and time.2. Warm up your hand, clean your finger, and stab yourself with a tiny knife…

  • How much PFAS are we talking about here? What’s a “ppt”?

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    Ali Ling
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    While PFAS are literally everywhere on the planet, there is not very much of them in most places.  We typically measure them in parts per trillion (a fraction with one on the top and a trillion on the bottom).  This range is so small that it’s really challenging to even think about.  Here are some…

  • How does PFAS get into the environment?

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    Ali Ling
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    For other places without a specific source of PFAS contamination, we don’t necessarily know how much PFAS is going into the environment and where it comes from. PFAS from “point” sources, like factories Some places have a lot of PFAS in the water and air as a result of specific stuff that happened there. These…

  • What about TFA?

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    Ali Ling
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    So small it’s harder to detect, so slippery it’s nearly impossible to remove from water. So pervasive it’s in your body right now! Remember Ladder PFAS? TFA is the 2-rung version of ladder PFAS and is generally unregulated. Health effects are being argued about, but everyone agrees that they are persistent. Also, unlike longer ladder…

  • How do our choices about PFAS affect future generations?

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    Ali Ling
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    While we don’t know much about most of the different PFAS out there, we do know that they are persistent. The thing that makes a PFAS a PFAS is the combination of carbon and fluorine, a combination which does not break down in the environment.  Or if it does, no one has seen or recorded…

  • Why do we use PFAS if they are harmful?

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    Ali Ling
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    Here’s a very brief list of things we use PFAS for: Whew, that’s the stuff you heard about in the news, right.  Well, those uses account for less than 1% of annual PFAS uses. Still think that PFAS don’t affect your life?  Here’s some other uses that are closer to home1: Now tell me that there’s…

  • What’s with all the different types of PFAS?

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    Ali Ling
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    I’m pretty sure you don’t give a crap about chemistry, so I’m not going to explain what PFAS stand for. Instead I’m going to try to explain about different types. Hopefully in a way that doesn’t make you want to take a nap. We’ll start with ladders. Ladder PFAS You can think about PFAS like…