Fertility Friday: Toxic Cookware Damages Your Health & Fertility

Didn’t making scrambled eggs and pancakes become so much easier and enjoyable when Teflon and other non-stick pans came onto the market?  No more tears shed over broken eggs or scrambled pancakes. No more wasted time spent soaking and scrubbing the pans. Sorry to disappoint you, but I’m afraid that your days of ‘easy frying’ may well be over, fertility foraging master chefs.

When heated, that apparently wonderful non-stick surface releases a less than wonderful chemical (with a very un-user friendly name) – pefluorooctanoate (PFOA) which is part of the larger perfluorinated (PFC) family of chemicals. Everyone knows not to scratch a non-stick surface. The reason? It may be because scratches reduce its effect, but the main reason is that when these surfaces become scratched and are then heated at a high temperature this allows even more toxins to leach out into our foods.

Research has linked high bloods levels of these chemicals to reduced fertility “…the proportion of women defined as experiencing infertility — meaning it took them more than a year of trying to become pregnant — rose from about 10 percent among women having the lowest concentrations of either perfluorinated pollutant in their blood to roughly twice that rate for moms with the most contaminated blood.”*

PFCs are thought to be endocrine (hormone) disruptors, leading to irregular menstruation and affecting thyroid health which directly affects our reproductive hormonal balance. PFCs have also been found to affect immunity and liver function, thereby affecting our fertility as our bodies are not able to optimally defend and cleanse.**

“…important new evidence that drastic declines in fertility rates in both the U.S. and Europe in recent decades may be linked to exposure to toxic chemicals, including PFOA.”*

Another EWG report mentions research showing that fumes given off when cooking with non-stick pans kills pet birds if they are in the same room (this actually happened to my cousin’s bird, not a pleasant experience).***  Need I say more about why this is not a good idea for fertility and any tiny passengers you might have on board? It is important to remember here that the level of toxicity we are born with begins when we are in the womb. High levels of toxicity from PFCs and other chemicals have been linked to birth defects and lower birth weights.  Although we cannot expect to live in a protected bubble, there is so much that we can do and it is so important to reduce our exposure to toxicity, wherever possible, not only to enhance fertility, but also for the long-term health of future generations.

What to use instead

• The EWG recommend using cast iron and stainless steel cookware and oven-safe glass for baking.
• Replace non-stick utensils with wood, bamboo or metal.
• Needless to say, when a new super-functional material is invented, it is used everywhere. PFCs can be found in carpeting, furniture, fire-proofing on every and any fabric, clothing, food wrap. Do not buy clothing or any household materials with a water repellent/protective coating.

Have a look at EWG’s download-able guide to PFCs for further information on how to avoid these chemicals.