For people who grew up in the post-Soviet space, the word "Teflon" was akin to the magic: the Teflon coating was a symbol of a new, unusual, inaccessible and extremely convenient in all areas of life. And today, every housewife has a Teflon pan and cooks it with pleasure. But what do we know about this coating? Can I use it without harming my health? Let's try to figure it out.
What is teflon?
To understand whether Teflon coating is harmful or not, you need to go back a little to the moment of invention and popularization of this product.
The authors of Teflon or Polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) are the developers of DuPont. As is often the case with major discoveries, scientists did this by accident: the purpose of laboratory research was to improve refrigeration equipment.
The truly revolutionary properties that the Teflon coating has have allowed it to be used in a wide variety of spheres of life and life, and studies have shown that Teflon is safe, at least when heated to no more than 220 degrees. This allowed to maximize the use of Teflon.
Where do we encounter teflon?
This type of coating is similar in properties to plastic and has very high sliding properties. That is why the most common Teflon coating is in the manufacture of non-stick cookware of various modifications. Mistresses around the world were delighted with the news: with minimal oil costs, you can get a perfectly fried product, and the harm of Teflon coating was considered a fiction of competitors.
The second most popular is the application of Teflon on the sole of the iron: this allows you to iron clothes with minimal effort and reduce the likelihood of clothing sticking and spoiling.
Teflon is also widely used in the manufacture of packaging for convenience foods, disposable tableware, various polishes, most often for automobiles and even in the manufacture of cosmetics.
Teflon on a car?
Recently, Teflon coating for a car body is gaining more and more popularity. This service is provided in car services, and it consists in the manual application of a specialized teflon polish on the entire body of the car. The procedure is quite lengthy and painstaking: it is worth entrusting the machine only to a professional, because the functionality of the coating itself will depend on the quality of the work.
The Teflon coating of the car avoids minor scratches and chips, there are no traces of raindrops and small splashes on the body, and the car itself always looks as if polished at a professional car wash.
First suspicions
The first bells about the potential dangers of Teflon came when Americans linked the use of chips and the risk of cancer. Initially, this was only associated with carcinogens, which are released during frying foods. But when diseases with similar diagnoses became widespread among the employees of the DuPont company, which produced Teflon in different variations, the harm of the Teflon coating became obvious.
Since 2001, the company has been continuously sued, the subject of lawsuits is not only the potential danger of manufactured products to consumers, but also excessive pollution of the environment with carcinogenic and toxic substances.
Harmful research
To answer the question of whether the Teflon coating is harmful or not, the researchers again had to. This time, a more detailed study of the issue by unbiased laboratories confirmed that when heated above 200 degrees, Teflon emits toxic and carcinogenic substances. They enter not only products that come into direct contact with the coating, but also stand out in the air.
It turns out that simply by frying potatoes in a Teflon pan, a person receives a significant dose of toxic substances. Studies have also shown that fumes when teflon is heated carry a mortal danger for birds: if a pet feathered home lives in the kitchen, there is definitely no place for a Teflon pan.
Scientists have proved that the use of Teflon for domestic purposes, especially for cooking, provokes problems with the hormonal background and the thyroid gland, promotes the development of tumor processes, including malignant ones, and also leads to fetal malformations in pregnant women.
Based on all this, Teflon-containing products are banned in the United States and several other countries.
Safety regulations
Can i use teflon coating? Reviews around the world speak about the convenience and durability of such products. Our answer: it is better to listen to the opinion of experts and not to use Teflon-containing products, especially for cooking. It is better to give preference to cast-iron cookware or made of stainless steel.
But if you really want to buy non-stick kitchen utensils, it is worth remembering a few simple rules for its operation:
- Teflon coating has an expiration date: even in the absence of external damage, you can use such dishes for no more than two years;
- in the event of chips and cracks on the Teflon coating, it is necessary to stop cooking in such dishes: toxic substances are actively released through cracks under the influence of temperature;
- do not cook food for babies in a Teflon pan, it is better to do this in an environmentally friendly dish.
Pay attention to everything that surrounds you: our daily routine consists of such trifles as a frying pan or iron. And contact with toxic substances, even in small quantities, will inevitably lead to poor health. Appreciate the health of your and your family - use organic products and environmentally friendly dishes.