Forever Chemicals Linked to Kidney Damage

Forever Chemicals Linked to Kidney Damage
Forever Chemicals Linked to Kidney Damage

United States: A new study shows that PFAS, also called forever chemicals, can hurt our gut health and may lead to kidney problems later in life. These chemicals are found in everyday products like cookware, clothes, phones, and carpets. Even small amounts can cause big health problems.

The Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry says that PFAS can lead to toxicity affecting liver and immune system, increased cancers, and endocrine signing. These may be of more concern to pregnant women and the unborn children because they can lead to low birth weight, birth malformations, developmental retardation and neonatal death in the lab animals.

The new study published online in Science of the Total Environment says that the changes in the gut bacteria and associated metabolites due to the PFAS seems to account for about 50% reduction in kidney function observed over four years.

As reported by the Times of India, this study also established that some of the PFAS may lead to chronic kidney disease. The researchers built on prior work that links PFAS to negative impacts on gut health While also building on prior work identifying how gut health affects the kidneys Scientists involved a limited number of young adults; majority of whom were Hispanic, which is a population that has above average rates of metabolic diseases and above average risk for kidney diseases.

Household member samples include their blood and stool samples to determine their PFAS levels, gut microbiome bacteria and circulating metabolites. As for their renal status, assessment was carried out after four years later.

Both the reductions of anti-inflammatory metabolites and the bacteria that produce those metabolites and the increased levels of inflammatory metabolites were established. This loss of kidney functions over the years places the patient in a preference for dialysis or a kidney transplant particularly if the patient has diabetes or another disease impacting kidney health.

Some researchers suggest that these chemicals might act as a kind of fatty acids, which are necessary for preservation of balance in the gut. However, the compounds are known to interfere with this process with probable undesirable impacts on the gut microbiota and health.