Okay dudes, we know that there’s a lot of fearmongering and conspiracy theories out there. But unlike chemtrails, this one actually has science behind it. Reputable, evidence-based science.
This big news about smaller things affects us all, because it concerns something that’s way too common in our lives, and that probably isn’t going anywhere anytime soon.
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Italian researchers have found a connection between something that’s great for the kitchen and something that’s a real drag in the bedroom: Non-stick pans.
Non-stick pans contain a class of chemicals known as PFCs. They’re also in stain-repelling products and firefighting foam, so they’re not uncommon even outside the home. Well, two PFC compounds, PFOA and PFOS, were found to cause serious problems for men’s reproductive health.
The news is decidedly not promising.
The study , published in the Journal of Clinical Endocrinology and Metabolism, shows that these chemicals interfere with a man’s package like a porch pirate with a grudge.
They’re associated with lower sperm counts, lower sperm mobility, shorter penises, and lower “anogenital distance,” which is a significant marker for reproductive ability.
The study was conducted in Veneto, Italy, an area ideal for such research because it was heavily contaminated with PFCs.
The researchers studied two groups of men, one of which had been exposed to the chemicals and one that hadn’t. The ones that hadn’t been exposed proved to be more Luigis than Marios (i.e. taller), and had a higher percentage of normally shaped sperm, too.
Turns out PFCs go right at testosterone receptors and block their activation.
Testosterone and PFCs share similar structures, so the chemicals will readily bind with the hormone and mess everything up. It sounds like the biological equivalent of realizing your new girlfriend bears a striking resemblance to your mother.
Oh, and there are three other areas of the world where PFCs have been dumped in the past.
In addition to Veneto, Italy, there’s the Dordrecht area in The Netherlands, Shandong, China, and the mid-Ohio Valley in West Virginia, where The Intercept reported that DuPont released the chemicals into the Ohio River. Of course, those are just the areas we know about.
Here’s the truly scary part: PFCs don’t go anywhere.
They don’t biodegrade, they don’t just go away. They’re with us forever. Scientists say that “Even if PFOA were banned today, the global mass of PFOA would continue to rise, and concentrations of PFOA in human blood would continue to build.”
Studies on water contamination with PFCs go back to the ’70s, so we’re talking about a full generation of guys who could have been affected by reproductive issues from PFC exposure.
And, again, we have to know where these chemicals have been spilled to have a real idea of who and how many men might have been exposed beyond their non-stick pans.
The question is, what can we do about it?
If these chemicals don’t break down, there are few options beyond banning them.
One of the study’s authors, Andrea Di Nisio, suggested that “We’re left with the question of how to remove [these chemicals] from the blood. We have to find a way to eliminate them.”
Reproductive health is serious business, so we might face a future without non-stick pans — or we might not stick around ourselves.
h/t: Endochrine Society
