When we talk concerning the health effects of PFA, we normally take into consideration any physical effects on the body.
For example, does exposure to those long-term, per- and polyfluoroalkyl chemicals increase our risk of cancer, liver disease, or pregnancy complications?
What’s less talked about is the psychological distress of living in a community affected by PFAS contamination — the uncertainty of whether your illness is attributable to PFA or something else, the stigma of living there, or the financial stress of seeing property values drop, amongst other aspects.
Later today, a Senate Select Committee It is ready to release its final report on the scope, regulation and administration of PFA in Australia.
Here we learn concerning the psychological effects of living with PFAs pollution.
What are PFAS chemicals?
Since the Fifties, firms have used PFAS chemicals in consumer goods from non-stick pans. Firefighters have used PFAS-based foams to fight high-temperature industrial fires, particularly at airports and through fire training.
These chemicals persist within the environment and accumulate in animals and humans. In humans, PFAs are mainly present within the blood and blood-rich organs, equivalent to the liver.
There are 1000’s of various PFA chemicals. However, health officials have focused on three common ones: Perfluorooctanesulfonic acid (PFOS),
Perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA) and Perfluorohexenesulfonic acid (PFHXS)
Average time Depending on the chemical, they assist to eliminate 50% from the human body in 2.7–5.3 years.
Their widespread use in consumer goods now means Most people Even in distant parts of Australia, they’ve low blood levels.
But the health effects are uncertain
Health researchers have conducted lots of of studies into the health effects of PFA. However, the outcomes are difficult to interpret and sometimes contradictory. This has led to uncertainty about their health effects.
Health authorities consider exposure to PFAS Possibly associated with it:
- Elevated levels of cholesterol
- Decreased antibody response to some vaccines
- Changes in liver enzymes (evidence of liver inflammation or damage)
- Pregnancy-induced hypertension (hypertension) and preeclampsia (complications of pregnancy that may be life-threatening for each mother and baby)
- A small decrease in birth weight
- Kidney and testicular cancer.
International Agency for Research on Cancer concluded That PFOA is a human carcinogen (meaning it will possibly cause cancer) and PFOS is possibly carcinogenic. It was not based on human epidemiological studies attributable to lack of evidence, but reasonably on experimental studies in animals and possible mechanisms of motion in humans.
An expert panel convened by NSW Health concluded Most of the health effects from PFA are expected to be minor this yr.
How PFA affects communities
Some communities has become contaminated With PFA, normally attributable to firefighting activities around airports, armed forces bases and firefighting training grounds.
This is because firefighting foams can leach PFAs into groundwater and nearby waterways. If people drink this water or eat food grown with it, PFAs can accumulate of their blood.
This has caused community members to turn into concerned about potential health impacts, and are telling us they’re concerned.
My research team conducted it PFAS Health Study Between 2018 and 2021 in three affected communities: Williamstown in New South Wales; Oki in Queensland; and Catherine, within the Northern Territory.
Residents and staff with higher blood levels of PFA also had higher levels of cholesterol. However, despite extensive investigation we found limited evidence of other health effects.
We found evidence of psychological distress amongst community members for plenty of reasons, including:
- Uncertainty about health effects
- Not understanding what high blood PFA levels mean
- Exposure to large amounts of PFA at work
- Financial pressure from property damage, either moving away from selling or falling property values in affected areas
- Interaction with government agencies responding to pollution
- Stigma from living in a polluted area.
In a survey we conducted, one in three participants in these cities were “very” or “extremely” concerned about their health. One in five said they were “very” or “extremely” fearful about their mental health.
A resident Told us Regarding the psychological distress related to uncertainty concerning the health effects of PFAS exposure:
You get sick and you do not know if [attribute] This is pollution here […] Am I causing this or is it something else?
Another told us concerning the alarming decline in property prices:
20 acres, ,000 100,000 4 bedroom house. I do not know anywhere in Australia which you can find something like this, perhaps [the other PFAS-affected sites].
Many residents spoke of feeling trapped. One told us:
We’ve been there 30 years and you may’t walk and where do you reside?
How to reply?
We found that the consequences of PFA pollution on communities far outweigh any physical effects on the body. Any response due to this fact must think about the psychological effects of living with PFA if we’re to support post-contamination and future post-contamination communities.
Government agencies are sometimes chargeable for coping with these “slow moving disasters”. It is due to this fact essential to ask communities what they should support them, beyond addressing the source of pollution and their physical needs, equivalent to providing protected drinking water. This may very well be support from counsellors, psychologists or other services.
The response to those events may take a few years. So we might have to think about the long-term psychological consequences of PFAS contamination when planning health services and providing support.