PFAS Toxicity: What's True, What's Not, and What Really Matters

A substantial body of evidence exists demonstrating that exposure to per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFASs) poses a risk to human health. Data from epidemiological studies of those exposed occupationally or environmentally demonstrate adverse health risks, and these health effects are concordant with data from toxicological studies. Systematic reviews, conducted by agencies, organizations, and independent scientists that synthesize and integrate these data streams, have concluded that a range of health risks arise from PFAS exposure, including different types of cancer, especially kidney and testicular cancer, metabolic alterations such as increased liver enzymes and increased cholesterol, immune dysfunction such as reduced vaccination efficiency, reproductive and developmental outcomes such as low birth weight and reduced duration of breast feeding, and forms of endocrine disruption. Despite this, myths and misinformation surrounding these health risks slow efforts to protect public health from the hazards of PFAS exposure. This work addresses the most predominant of these myths and counters them with accumulated evidence from epidemiological and toxicological studies, demonstrating that exposure to PFASs poses a risk to human health.