Cincinnati.com: Forever chemicals in Ohio's drinking water: Why Cincinnati is better off than Indian Hill
UC expert talks about the health threats from PFAS
New data from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency shows that industrial pollutants, known as forever chemicals, which are linked to cancer and other serious ailments, are rarely detected in samples of drinking water from Cincinnati and most nearby communities.
The chemicals turn up in drinking water all over Greater Cincinnati, but how many toxins – and how much of them – flow from your tap depends on where you live. Cincinnati.com posted a story on PFAS, reporting that in Northern Kentucky and Colerain and Springfield townships, trace amounts are sometimes found at levels exceeding the EPA's minimum reporting limits.
Water districts that serve Indian Hill, Terrace Park and Loveland found the largest amount of forever chemicals in the area, with some samples measuring three to four times the reporting limits. In the Cincinnati.com article one of the experts cited was Susan Pinney, PhD, of the Department of Environmental and Public Health Sciences at the UC College of Medicine.
Susan Pinney, PhD, of the Department of Environmental and Public Health Sciences/Photo/Colleen Kelley/UC Marketing + Brand
Pinney said the half-life of PFAS compounds — the amount of time it takes the chemicals to lose half their toxicity — is about four years in the human body.
Because they take so long to break down in the body and in the environment, the amount of toxicity can build up in people who are regularly exposed to the compounds, which is why they are called “forever chemicals.”
Overhauling water treatment systems is an expensive process which poses challenges for some communities which can't afford to make the needed changes.
Every solution comes with costs, said Pinney. But she said the tougher regulations are necessary. She recently led a study that linked one PFAS compound to delays in the physical development of girls.
"As we continue to do research," she said, "we find there are health effects at lower and lower levels."
Pinney also discussed this topic as a guest on Cincinnati Edition on WVXU. Hear that interview here.
Read more about Pinney's research on how PFAS can delay puberty in girls here.
Featured image at top: vitranc/iStock
Next Lives Here
The University of Cincinnati is classified as a Research 1 institution by the Carnegie Commission and is ranked in the National Science Foundation's Top-35 public research universities. UC's graduate students and faculty investigate problems and innovate solutions with real-world impact. Next Lives Here.
Related Stories
U.S. News & World Report: Metformin may help young patients with bipolar disorder avoid weight gain
October 31, 2023
U.S. News & World Report highlighted recent research led by the University of Cincinnati and Northwell Health that found the drug metformin can help prevent or reduce weight gain in youth taking medication to treat bipolar disorder.
MSN: Mother's stress levels during pregnancy could increase risk of illness in children
January 13, 2021
A University of Cincinnati researcher says there is a connection between trauma and lifetime stress in an expectant mother and DNA mutation in her newborn child. It could lead to a host of diseases that begin in childhood including obesity, asthma, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder and autism.
Business Courier: UC part of nearly $2M CDC grant to develop next generation of health care PPE
November 10, 2021
UC researchers are taking part in a new nearly $2 million, multiyear study that will help develop a new generation of PPE, or personal protective equipment, for health care workers. UC researchers will work with teams from Iowa State University and the University of California-Davis to improve the design, function and safety of PPE, or personal protective equipment, the university said in a release this week. The study is part of a multi-institutional, four-year grant worth $1.8 million from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The Cincinnati Business Courier published a story on the research.
PBS NewsHour: Why tracking these pollution indicators is key after the East Palestine train derailment
April 19, 2023
Two months after the derailment of a train carrying hazardous chemicals, state and federal agencies are monitoring air, water and soil samples in and around East Palestine, Ohio, for signs of pollution. So how long will those steps be necessary to ensure the safety of the community? Glenn Talaska, PhD, professor emeritus in the Department of Environmental and Public Health Sciences in the UC College of Medicine was one of the experts interviewed for a story produced by PBS News Hour.
U.S. News & World Report: PFAS chemicals tied to later puberty in girls
October 3, 2023
Research out of the University of Cincinnati shows that exposure to PFAs chemicals delays the onset of puberty in girls by an average of five to six months. The research was published in the journal PLOS One. U.S. News & World Report published a story on the study, featuring comments from lead researcher Susan Pinney, MD, of the Department of Environmental and Public Health Sciences.
Dayton 24/7 Now: Environmental concerns after lithium-ion battery burns in Piqua, why the company was allowed to police itself
November 15, 2023
People in the Dayton, Ohio suburb of Piqua are expressing concerns about the city burning lithium-ion batteries at a training facility near the Great Miami River. The program had been going on for five years, since 2018, but the environmental impact of these lithium-ion battery burns is still unknown. Dayton 24/7 Now produced a story on the issue, interviewing Jun Wang, PhD, of the Department of Environmental and Public Health Sciences at the UC College of Medicine.
AP: Communities await first US limits on ‘forever chemicals’
March 2, 2023
The Associated Press interviewed Susan Pinney, PhD, of the University of Cincinnati Department of Environmental Health and Public Sciences about the expectation that the EPA to propose restrictions on harmful “forever chemicals” in drinking water after finding they are dangerous in amounts so small as to be undetectable.
Cincinnati.com: Forever chemicals in Ohio's drinking water: Why Cincinnati is better off than Indian Hill
November 22, 2023
New data from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency shows that industrial pollutants, known as forever chemicals, which are linked to cancer and other serious ailments, are rarely detected in samples of drinking water from Cincinnati and most nearby communities. Cincinnati.com posted a story on PFAS, and one of the experts cited was Susan Pinney, PhD, of the Department of Environmental and Public Health Sciences at the UC College of Medicine.
New York Times: What to know about lead exposure in children
February 27, 2024
A recent outbreak of lead poisoning from cinnamon in applesauce has drawn attention to the toxic effect the heavy metal can have on children. The cinnamon in the applesauce was believed to have been intentionally contaminated, possibly to add to its value as a commodity sold by weight. The New York Times published an article on the outbreak, quoting Kim Dietrich, PhD, of the Department of Environmental and Public Health Sciences at the UC College of Medicine.
WVXU: Food allergy sufferers want clearer food labels and new research may help
April 19, 2021
Lynne Haber, PhD, a senior toxicologist in the UC College of Medicine, spoke with a journalist from Cincinnati’s public radio station, WVXU, about her research that has identified a possible ‘eliciting dose’ of peanut that may trigger an allergic reaction in individuals with peanut allergies.