‘Forever chemicals’ are known for lingering in the body. Menstruation helps expel them

By Sharon Udasin and Rachel Frazin | The Hill | April 29, 2024

Read the full article by Sharon Udasin and Rachel Frazin (The Hill)

"Cancer-linked “forever chemicals” got their moniker because of how long they linger without breaking down — in the environment and the human body. Menstruation can provide a way of shedding at least some of the compounds, however.

“Some PFAS bind strongly to proteins in blood, and when women menstruate, they lose those blood proteins linked to PFAS,” Suzanne Fenton, who at the time was a group leader in the Mechanistic Toxicology Branch of the National Toxicology Program at the National Institutes of Health, told The Hill. 

“Therefore, this is a unique route of elimination,” added Fenton, who is now the director of North Carolina State University’s Center for Human Health and the Environment."

Topics:

• ChemicalsPFAS
• Affected community
• Health
• Measurement Techniques
• Monitoring Data