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Exposure to chemicals used in the manufacture of nonstick cookware and waterproof and stain-resistant products could be raising cholesterol levels in children, a new study suggests.
Researchers analyzed blood levels of the chemicals perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA) and perfluoroctanesulfonate (PFOS) in more than 12,000 kids living in West Virginia and Ohio.
Those with the highest blood levels of the chemicals were also more likely to have abnormally high total cholesterol and LDL "bad" cholesterol, study researcher Stephanie J. Frisbee, MSc, of the West Virginia University School of Medicine tells WebMD.
While the study does not prove exposure to PFOA and PFOS raises cholesterol, the findings warrant further study, Frisbee says.
"These chemicals are in the environment and they are in us," she says. "More than anything this study highlights that we had better figure out how we are being exposed and what this exposure is doing to us."
