Study Finds Industrial Toxin Widespread

Posted on: Friday, 25 July 2008, 09:20 CDT Scientists have expressed concerns that polyfluoroalkyl compounds (PFCs) - an industrial toxin - have spread worldwide after they found high levels in people who eat whale meat in the remote Faroe Islands in the North Atlantic. Philippe Grandjean, an environmental health expert at the Harvard School of Public Health and the University of Southern Denmark said, "This pollution is a new health concern for the Faroese and many populations worldwide." Grandjean said, "We know very little on the toxicity in humans so far, even less in regard to whales." PFCs are used in products such as water or grease repellents for textiles, fire-fighting foams, or some papers. The study found higher traces of PFCs in the blood of people who ate whales in the Faroes -- between Norway and Iceland --... [read full story]