Pick Your Poison

Non-Stick Will Stick Around

Throughout the years invention and innovation have yielded several products to make our lives easier. Whether this change is as big as being able to cross a continent in hours by means of air travel or having the ability to get an omelet out of a pan without a struggle by means of non-stick technology, these inventions all affect us and those around us more than we think. Most use non-stick pans and stain removal products with ease, knowing that there is a quick fix to their situation. However, we would be more hesitant to do so if we were aware that these products could be slowly poisoning us. Most non-stick items and stain removal inventions have chemicals in them called PFOA’s and PFOS’s. Tests have been conducted on these chemicals that show they can have vastly negative effects on the environment and living creatures. Over the span of two decades, the tests have shown that not only are these poisonous chemicals in virtually every human, but they have also shown that they can cause a host of health issues. These health issues range from several types of cancer to making vitamins and vaccinations less effective. These dangerous chemicals have been found in our water and our cooking ware. PFOA’s and PFOS’s are known as “forever chemicals”. This title really makes you think about our willingness to trade comfort for safety. These chemicals are everywhere, and yet, if more people knew about them I cannot say for sure that people would stop using items that contain them. For us to even make this choice, however, we must be aware of it and that is difficult when the companies using forever chemicals work so hard to cover up the danger. If we are willing to put the comfort of ease and the comfort of wealth over the safety of ourselves and those we love what does that say for our future?