‘Forever chemicals’ found in foetuses pose risk of adulthood diseases

A year after a universal ban on per- and poly-fluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) was proposed in the EU, a new study found that PFAS affect people as early as the fetal stage of development. 

The study – the first of its kind, in which researchers have conducted extensive metabolic profiling and measured PFAS in human foetuses – was published in the scientific journal Lancet Planetary Health on Monday (8 January). It found that foetuses exposed to PFAS have altered metabolism and liver function even before birth, which may increase the risk of metabolic diseases, such as diabetes, in adulthood.

“This is why the proposed EU PFAS restriction is now more important than ever,” Génon Jensen, director of the non-profit Health and Environment Alliance (HEAL) said on Tuesday. HEAL is in favour of a widely restrictive proposal that minimises derogations for all non-essential PFAS uses which was presented last year.

“We see that PFAS likely has a great metabolic impact, which suggests an increased risk of certain diseases later in life,” said Matej Orešič, professor of medical sciences at Örebro University in Scotland, who co-led the study.

PFAS are a large, complex group of synthetic chemicals that have been used around the world since the 1950s. Carbon-fluorine bonds, one of the strongest chemical bonds in organic chemistry, give PFAS useful properties for making products non-stick, or oil-, stain-, and water-repellent.

However, PFAS persist in the environment, hence being referred to as ‘forever chemicals’.

These substances pollute water and soil and cause adverse health effects, such as liver damage, immune system disruption, and certain cancers. They can have negative effects on human reproduction and can harm the development of fetuses or interfere with the hormonal system as endocrine disruptors.

A team of researchers from Örebro University and the University of Aberdeen studied 78 foetuses that were voluntarily aborted between weeks 12 and 19 and considered essentially healthy.

“We found PFAS in the livers of the fetuses, and unfortunately, the results provide strong evidence that exposure to these forever chemicals in the womb affects the unborn child,” said Paul Fowler from the University of Aberdeen, who co-led the study.

“Those exposed to higher levels of PFAS have altered metabolism and liver function long before birth,” he added.

The researchers consider it likely that at least some of these effects will be persistent and likely increase the risk of metabolic diseases in adulthood. The likely impact of PFAS is similar to the changes that occur as a result of metabolic diseases like diabetes and fatty liver.

“Changes in the central metabolism can profoundly affect the whole body. In particular, changes during fetal development can have long-lasting consequences for future health,” said Orešič.

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EU’s universal ban on PFAS still in the making

Almost exactly one year ago, Denmark, Germany, the Netherlands, Sweden, and non-EU member Norway proposed an EU-wide ban on over 10,000 PFAS under the Registration, Evaluation, Authorisation and Restriction of Chemicals (REACH) regulation.

The dossier submitters proposed to ban the manufacture, use, and placing on the market of PFAS with a general transition period of 18 months after the entry into force. There are several use-specific and time-limited derogations based on the availability of alternatives, and socio-economic considerations for specific sectors.

“There is a general derogation for the use [of PFAS] as an active substance in plant production, biocidal and medicinal products,” Peter van der Zandt, director of risk management at European Chemicals Agency (ECHA) told MEPs back in June, stressing that this is not a ‘blanket ban’.

As of 7 December, the proposal was being analysed by ECHA’s committees for Socio-Economic Analysis (SEAC) and for Risk Assessment (RAC), which are currently looking at the 5,642 comments received from individuals and organisations during the six-month consultation which ended in September last year on the universal PFAS restriction.

This is not the first restriction on the ‘forever chemicals’. Under the EU’s chemicals strategy, the Commission said it is committed to phasing out the use of PFAS in the EU unless their use is essential for society.

There are several PFAS already banned under the REACH regulation. Additionally, a restriction proposal for perfluorohexane-1-sulphonic acid (PFHxS) is in the advanced stages and is hoped to be adopted by the end of 2024 or early 2025.

Another restriction proposal regards firefighting foams which, in terms of emissions into the environment, are a major source of PFAS.

In comparison, the regulation on PFAS is less strict in China where diseases such as childhood obesity and diabetes have skyrocketed in recent years. Researchers believe that PFAS and other environmental chemicals may be one of the causes of this increase, the press release from Örebro University said.

“A connection is very likely. And it may turn out that exposure to harmful chemicals has a comparable or even greater impact than lifestyle when it comes to certain diseases,” Orešič concluded.

[Edited by Nathalie Weatherald]

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