You can’t see, taste or smell it, but it is almost everywhere. PFAS is a collective name for a group of chemicals that can be harmful to our health. The Eindhoven Twan Peters (40) is very worried about this. That is why he participated in the first national PFAS blood study of Stichting Appointment. “The problem is bigger than it seems,” Twan explains.
Years ago, Twan saw an episode of Zembla about PFAS. “Then I started to delve into it, because I found it disturbing that we are still using PFAS. It is being used in so many things. In carpet, clothing, telephones, pans with non-stick coating, lenses, paint, makeup. “
Stichting Appointment conducts research into such harmful substances. When the foundation found participants for a blood test last September, Twan immediately reported. From every province, people have had their blood tested for the presence of PFAS. “PFAS was found in the blood for all thirteen participants.”
What is PFAS and how does the government deal with it?
PFAS are chemicals made by humans, they are water, fat, and dirt-repellent and originally do not occur in nature. They can be harmful to health and the environment.
Earlier research by the RIVM has already shown that we get too much PFAS through food and drinking water.
The RIVM is currently investigating how PFAS exposure in the Netherlands can be reduced. Work is also being done on a proposal for a European ban on PFAS.
The blood of the participants was also tested on PFOS, one of the substances that falls under PFAS. “Pfos had the highest values for each participant, while that has been forbidden for years,” says Twan. “This research therefore shows that once it is in your body, it doesn’t just go away. Pfos therefore stays in our environment because it doesn’t break off.”
“You can get certain types of cancer, such as liver cancer.”
Twan believes it is important to create consciousness, especially with the younger generation. “My daughter is two years old and of course she also gets PFAS every day. In children it is known that they can have a lower vaccination rate. For adults it can ensure a weakened immune system. It can also affect your hormone balance And you can get certain types of cancer, such as liver cancer. “
And although Twan does its best to get less PFAS, it is virtually impossible not to get anything in your body. “I no longer use pans with a Teflon layer, no baking paper, no shoe spray that contains Pfas. I also look out with fish because our oceans are polluted with PFAS. It is difficult to completely avoid it. Most PFAS we get in through our tap water and food. “
“We’d better take action now than we wait.”
In Brabant our tap water is extracted from groundwater and, according to Twan, that is a good sign. “That is not the case in every province. In the Randstad it comes from surface water. Groundwater has much less PFAS so that is an advantage of living here.”
According to De Eindhovenaar, the problem is much larger than it seems. “Now you may not notice it much, but there will probably be a time when it is. We better take action now than we wait.”
Twan would prefer to see a ban for companies on discharging PFAS into the water or the air. “There is attention for politics, but it will take a few years before there is a ban because there is a lot of opposition from companies.”