Popcorn Poison
It’s time to get rid of toxic PFAS chemicals in food packaging
There’s no “official” snack food of the modern Microwave Age. But if I say “microwave,” you’ll probably say “popcorn.” We‘ve all eagerly awaited the final beep, those last few slow pops and a buttery smell in the air as we set up for family movie night.
I shouldn’t have to worry about toxic chemicals in my popcorn. But the bags containing microwave popcorn often include dangerous chemicals called PFAS, that are linked to serious health problems.
PFAS (and their cousins, PFCs) are synthetic chemicals used to keep food from sticking to cookware, to make receipts shiny, to make sofas and carpets stain-resistant, to make clothes and mattresses more waterproof, and to make food packaging resistant to grease absorption. Although some PFAs have been manufactured for more than 50 years, they weren’t widely used in food packaging until the early 2000s.
That’s the glossy stuff that coats the inside of microwavable popcorn bags.
But I like waterproof mattresses and nonstick cookware . So, what’s the downside?
The downside is cancer. That’s a pretty terrible downside.
PFAs cause changes in the function of hormones and vital organs including the liver and pancreas. This can lead to serious health problems such as testicular cancer for men, high blood pressure, and other forms of cancer that affect men and women. And for women who are pregnant, the news is really bad: lower birth-weight children, increased chance of miscarriage, and other birth defects.
The situation is so bad that according to the EPA, PFAs are considered “emerging contaminants — ” a new threat to human health and the environment.
Because the use of PFAS is relatively new, there are no national standards limiting its use in containers for popcorn, hamburgers, muffins, and other food packaging.
Just when you thought toxic popcorn was gross… you learn about toxic muffins.
PFAs, despite their use as a non-stick repellent, actually stick around in the environment and in the human body for a long time — up to nine years in our bodies. These chemicals are commonly found in Americans’ systems: in our blood, urine, and even in umbilical cords. So, PFAs don’t belong anywhere where they can get into our bodies.
We can, and should, ban this stuff in every state.
Some states are already working on it. In the past month, the state of Washington celebrated a landmark victory: the successful passage of a historic ban on PFAs in food packaging.
This issue is increasingly urgent. One scientist called PFAs the “poster child” for what’s wrong with chemical regulation in America, partly because they are “just about indestructible, so, for eons to come, they will poison our blood, our household dust, our water and the breast milk our babies drink.”
This is 2018. As consumers, we need to stand up for the basic idea that people shouldn’t be needlessly exposed to dangerous chemicals — especially when safe alternatives exist. Kids eat popcorn. Grandparents eat popcorn. Moms and dads eat popcorn. Let’s make our snacks — and all of our everyday products — safe. Let’s ban PFAs. And let’s make horror films the only scary part of family movie night.
