Non-stick saucepans dangerous?!

[flibbertigibbit]

I’ve just been reading the article below and feel so anxious. I’ve been cooking my children’s food using non-stick saucepans and am now really worried I’ve put their health at risk! There’s no way I can afford to replace my saucepans - I don’t know what to do 🙁

www.dailymail.co.uk/health/article-11092983/amp/Researchers-forever-chemicals-popular-cooking-products-cause-liver-cancer.html

It's a bit beyond saucepans now - they've found those chemicals in rainwater and newborn babies. I'll have to look it up but they estimate most of the population already has forever chemicals inside them. There's a film based on a true story - Dark Waters - which talks about how long this problem was known about and how hard the companies involved tried to cover it up.
It's not great news but I wouldn't be that worried about changing your saucepans - forever chemicals are already pretty much everywhere.

I used to read articles about plastic pollution. This sort of thing all the time. Everything in this modern world is basically a prison for ourselves. The best thing to do is to Bury your head in the sand and pretend it isn't true. Only millionaires can afford everything without plastic (or cancer risk everything)

just don't make custard. you can really tell how many black flakes are in your food with custard.

It was published in the Daily Mail 🤣🤣🤣

It's a bit beyond saucepans now
I agree with this!
I though those saucepans were only an issue if they were heated too hot (with nothing in them) or if the coating is scratched in any way. Once it becomes scratched, you need to replace it.

Things are way beyond nonstick pans.

But what does 'can't afford' mean? Unless you can't afford cheap second hand steel pans from a charity shop and only shop at food banks, you probably do have the cash if you thought it was that important. It's all priorities.

So ... part of you isn't prioritising it and prefers to get anxious and catastrophise instead of taking action.

That's a very human response!

Could you come up with some actions eg when they scratch you will definitely replace them? Your next pans won't be non stick? You'll buy additional pans as you have the money? Then stop worrying.

It has been known that non-stick coatings are very bad for health for many decades, I have never used them for that reason.

Buy stainless steel or enamel. I disagree about millionaires - we were genuinely skint and manage without non-stick. Secondhand stainless steel is better than new non-stick.

The picture on the article is of the type of pans that are NOT a problem
Daily Mail is shite. This article is correct though, just thirty years late.

Same. I read about non stick, twenty years ago.

Get thee to a charity shop or carboot and buy stainless steel.

On the upside, enamel, stainless steel and iron cookware lasts for years, its an investment and overall cheaper. It's also not going into landfill every five minutes.

But I agree with others, and it's impossible to avoid all of these chemicals entirely. So try not to worry.

I believe there’s female hormones in all water due to the pill/HRT, nothing can be done about that. We need water.

Look at charity shops, ebay, local selling pages and similar for 2nd hand stainless steel pans. No need to be matchy matchy. Or ask for ones for bday, and christmas present/s, build up this way. But yeah, this was spoken about many years ago, bear in mind I am a middle aged woman.

Custard showing the dark flakes, yep, true.

But in the grand scheme, these compounds are present everywhere.

But in the grand scheme, these compounds are present everywhere Like all unhealthy things, reducing exposure is rational. You can't eliminate exposure but not buying non-stick pans is an easy measure to take. I bake cakes in pyrex for example.

I don't buy teflon coated anything due to the cancer-causing properties. The coating on clothes just washes off and into the water system anyway, it should not be legal.

Agree, reducing exposure is sensible, pragmatic, even.

If you are concerned get of shit sites like the daily mail and look at organisations that are trying to educate and combat. Try pfasfree.org.uk I've worked with them in the past and they used to have great resources on thier site.

teflon Coated clothes - this pisses me off far more. There is now an “eco Teflon” made from plants and I spent an hour trying to work out what it actually was and gave up.

avoid as much as you can but you don’t fret over the past as it’s pointless

@flibbertigibbit Have you never seen the list of daily mail cancer causing foods? I adk because they love to do these scare stories when the risk is so tiny that it's not worth considering and the list is really laughable. Here are the highlights:-
Tea
Coffee
Bacon
Sausages
Wine
Crisps
Eggs
Dairy
And my favourite oxygen (the most dangerous cancer causer of the list)
I'm not trying to scare you just trying to put this in prospective for you

It's when the coating is damaged it shouldn't be used ,so any scratches dispose of.

the risk is so tiny that it's not worth considering the products on your list are all well known to be unhealthy. You do not have to remove them from a diet, just reduce.

A healthy diet is healthier than an unhealthy diet, obviously. The risk of an unhealthy diet is a high risk to take.

The Daily Mail is absolute shite, but the health research is true.

PTFE is highly carcinogenic if PFOA is used and this was originally the case in the 40's and for many years. Dupont had massive legal issues right up to the 70's with this but PTFE is supposed to be safe nowadays.

Check for a BPA free label. No PTFE should have POFA nowadays.

Despite this, it's alleged that we don't use it properly as you're not supposed to use non stick pans at extreme temperatures and should replace once the coating degrades (cracks or flakes).

And in your world as soon as something is published in the Daily Mail it becomes untrue.

Very worrying but yes it's been known for a while.
I can't think too much about the things that are in our water and food systems. I read recently that microplastics were found in the placenta of a newborn baby.
Sadly very little we can do about it.

I watched Dark Waters, got hysterically upset, and my DH bought new pans... I was pregnant and very hormonal He jokes it's the most expensive film he has ever watched!
Don't regret buying the new pans though, they're much nicer to use.

Asda George sell a basic set of 3 stainless steel saucepans for around £20, they are quite good quality for the price.

Buy Scoville pans if you're going to replace the ones you have ,they last really well and don't disintegrate.

Think of it this way: Plenty of us have used non stick for years without being poisoned or getting cancer.

Your children will be fine.

Replace when you can but don't worry about it in the meantime.

Washing by hand as opposed to the dishwasher can apparently help maintain the integrity of the non stick.