Q Scotchgard contains perfluorochemicals, which have been in the news. I have Scotchgard on my children's mattresses. Can they safely sleep on these? Also, some lakes contain these chemicals. Can children swim in them? How dangerous are these chemicals?
A It's probably safe to sleep on a mattress that was treated with Scotchgard, said Minnesota Health Department spokesman Doug Schultz. The worry with perfluorochemicals (PFC) is ingestion, not skin contact. Children would have to get it into their mouths. One way that might happen is as Scotchgard breaks down over time and becomes part of household dust. Using a mattress pad and sheets, however, will virtually eliminate that exposure, Schultz said.
The Health Department also says it's OK to swim in lakes where PFCs may be present in very low levels. The chemicals are poorly absorbed through skin and incidental water ingestion is insignificant.
Studies show that nearly all people have some PFCs in their blood, regardless of age. How it got there and what the consequences may be are not known.
PFCs are a family of relatively new manmade chemicals. They were used in products such as fabric protectors, nonstick cookware and firefighting foam. PFCs are very stable. They do not change or break down in the environment. They may be in soil, sediments, water or other places. Minnesota is one of the few states where these chemicals were made and used. Beginning in the late 1950s, 3M Co. made PFCs at its Cottage Grove facility and sent production waste to local disposal sites. Yet PFCs are found in remote areas, such as in the blood of Arctic polar bears.
Studies show that PFCs easily enter groundwater and can move long distances. Some experts suggest that PFCs can also travel long distances in air, deposit on soil and leach into groundwater. People could be exposed through food, drinking water, use of commercial products or from the environment. Some PFCs stay in the body for years.
High concentrations of PFCs in laboratory animals cause harmful changes in the liver and other organs. Developmental problems (delays in growth and maturation) have been seen in the offspring of rats and mice exposed to PFCs while pregnant. Some types of PFCs in high concentrations over a long period also cause cancer in lab animals.
There are not many studies of health effects in people. Studies by 3M of workers exposed to PFCs during manufacturing show no apparent impact on their health. There is no similar health study information for the general population, although a study of 70,000 people exposed to perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA) in drinking water in Ohio and West Virginia is underway.
