Some of these substances cause cancer.
Scientists from Stockholm University stated that rainwater around the world is undrinkable due to the high content of toxic substances known as PFAS. According to Phys.org, these substances are known as “eternal toxins” because they break down very slowly.
PFAS (per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances) were originally contained in packaging, shampoo or cosmetics, but after a while they spread throughout to the entire environment.
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“According to our measurements, there is no place on Earth where rain would be safe to drink “, – said Ian Cousins, a professor at the university and the lead author of the study.
The team of scientists has been collecting data since 2010. Their analysis found that “even on the Tibetan Plateau and in Antarctica, levels of chemicals in rainwater exceed drinking water standards set by the US Environmental Protection Agency.” Those two regions are considered untouched, but their levels of PFAS are 14 times higher than the guidelines allow.
The recommended levels were recently lowered, Cousins said, because it became known that PFASs can affect the immune response to vaccination in children.
After ingestion, PFAS accumulate in the body. Some studies also suggest that these substances may lead to fertility problems, developmental delays in children, increased risk of obesity or certain types of cancer (prostate, kidney or testicular), and increased cholesterol.
According to scientists, our planet is now “irreversibly infected”. Cousins notes that now PFAS are so ubiquitous and active that they simply will never disappear from the Earth, we ourselves have made our planet “inhospitable to life”.
At the same time, the scientist notes that the content of PFAS in the human body over the past 20 years “significantly reduced”, and their concentration in the environment even decreased. But the regulations that regulate the limit levels of PFAS have changed, they have become much lower, as we learn more and more about these dangerous substances.
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Previously The World Organization said that air pollution is one of the biggest environmental threats to humanity, along with climate change.
