We can reduce everyone's exposure by winning policy and market action to replace PFAS with safer alternatives. You can let your favorite retailers, brands, and policymakers know that you want them to ban PFAS and ensure that alternatives are safer.

Avoid clothing, furniture, bedding, and other household items marketed as stain-proof and/or water-resistant. Instead, choose washable items. If you need waterproof or water-resistant clothing or household items, PFAS-free items can be found. Contact the company and search for items listed as PFAS-free to make sure they do not contain whole classes of compounds. Avoid any item with a "perfluorooctane sulfonate-free" label, which indicates that the item does not contain some but not all perfluorooctanoic acid.

Stay away from oily or oily packaged foods and fast foods, as the packaging often contains grease-resistant coatings. Examples include microwave popcorn bags and some fast food wrappers.

Avoid Personal care products made from Teflon ™ or containing ingredients that contain the words "fluoride" or "perfluorinated" PFAS can be found in floss and a variety of cosmetics, including foundation, lip products, and mascara.

Avoid using Teflon ™ or nonstick cooking utensils.

What's the solution?

We can't shop our way out of this problem. We shouldn't do this. When you walk into a store, you should be able to trust that the products on store shelves are safe.

Companies should not be selling products that contain dangerous chemical, especially as scientists continue to learn about the "silent epidemic" caused by the cumulative effects of all the toxic chemical we are regularly exposed to. Our state and federal governments should not allow chemical on the market until they are proven safe.