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We now know harmful “forever chemicals” are likely in the bodies of most people on earth. Decades ago, 3M knew that these chemicals had seeped into the public’s blood, but they kept that a secret. One 3M scientist helped reporter Sharon Lerner understand how they kept it quiet for so long.
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Transcript
Editor’s Note: “Paper Trail” is produced as an audio series. If you are able, we encourage you to listen to the series. This transcript has been lightly edited for style.
Jessica Lussenhop: So I know that you don’t know me. But you and I probably have something in common. It’s quite likely that inside you and me and almost every living thing on this crazy blue marble … is a little substance called … “forever chemicals.”
I’m sure you’ve heard of them. These are the chemicals, invented by humans, coating products like nonstick pans. For decades, they were put in food packaging — like, they used to be on McDonald’s hamburger wrappers. They’re in mascara and firefighting foam. On couches, carpets and raincoats, to make them stainproof and water-repellent. And from those products and from factories they’ve spread … everywhere.
Lerner: It’s become clear that these chemicals are actually in every state and in every country and in everybody.
Lussenhop: My ProPublica colleague Sharon Lerner is one of the many people who helped uncover this. Forever chemicals — also known as PFAS — are … forever. They don’t break down easily in the environment or in our bodies.
Lerner: They have developmental effects, immune effects. Thyroid, liver, hormonal systems. Some cause cancer, kidney cancer, obesity. They bind to proteins in your blood, and they change how systems in your bodies work.
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