For people who grew up in the post-Soviet space, the word "teflon" was akin to magic: Teflon coating was a symbol of the new, unusual, inaccessible and extremely convenient in all areas of life. And today, every housewife has a Teflon pan and cooks with pleasure on it. But what do we know about this coverage? Is it possible to use it without compromising your he alth? 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 the 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 it quite by accident: the purpose of laboratory research was to improve refrigeration equipment.
The truly revolutionary properties that Teflon coating has made it possible to use it in various areas of life and life, and studies have shown that Teflon is safe, at least when heated to no more than 220 degrees. This made it possible 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 Teflon coating has received the greatest distribution in the manufacture of non-stick cookware of various modifications. Housewives around the world were delighted with the novelty: with minimal oil consumption, you can get a perfectly fried product, and the damage to the Teflon coating was considered an invention of competitors.
The second most popular is the application of Teflon on the soleplate: this allows you to iron clothes with minimal effort and reduces the likelihood of sticking and damage to clothes by high temperatures.
Teflon is also widely used in the manufacture of packaging for semi-finished products, disposable tableware, various polishes, most often for cars and even in the production of cosmetics.
Teflon on a car?
Recently, Teflon coating for car body is gaining more and more popularity. This service is provided in car services, and it consists in manually applying a specialized polish with Teflon to the entire car body. The procedure is quite long and painstaking: it is worth entrusting the car only to a professional, because the functionality of the coating itself will depend on the quality of the work.
The car's Teflon coating avoids minor scratches and chips, raindrops and small splashes do not remain on the body, and the car itself always looks like just polishedat a professional car wash.
First suspicions
The first signs of the potential dangers of Teflon came when Americans linked the consumption of fried potatoes and the risk of cancer. Initially, this was associated only with carcinogens that are released during frying of food. But when diseases with similar diagnoses became widespread among employees of the DuPont company, which produced Teflon in various variations, the harm of the Teflon coating became obvious.
Since 2001, the company has been constantly sued, the subject of claims is not only the potential danger of the products to consumers, but also excessive environmental pollution with carcinogenic and toxic substances.
Research on harmfulness
Answer the question of whether the Teflon coating is harmful or not, again the researchers had to answer. This time, a more detailed study of the issue by unbiased laboratories confirmed that when heated above 200 degrees, Teflon releases toxic and carcinogenic substances. They not only enter the products that come into direct contact with the coating, but are also released into the air.
It turns out that by simply frying potatoes in a Teflon pan, a person receives a significant dose of toxic substances. Studies have also shown that fumes from heating Teflon are deadly for birds: if a domestic feathered bird lives in the kitchendarling, a Teflon pan definitely doesn't belong there.
Scientists have proven that the use of Teflon for domestic purposes, especially for cooking, provokes problems with the hormonal background and the functioning of the thyroid gland, contributes to the development of tumor processes, including malignant ones, and also leads to fetal malformations in pregnant women women.
Because of all this, products containing Teflon are prohibited in the United States and several other countries.
Safety rules
Can Teflon coating be used? Reviews around the world talk about the convenience and durability of such products. Our answer: it is better to listen to the opinion of experts and do not use products containing Teflon, especially for cooking. It is better to give preference to cast-iron cookware or stainless steel.
But if you really want to buy non-stick kitchen utensils, you should remember a few simple rules for its operation:
- Teflon coating has a shelf life: even in the absence of external damage, you can use such dishes for no more than two years;
- if chips and cracks occur on the Teflon coating, it is necessary to stop cooking food in such dishes: toxic substances are actively released through cracks under the influence of temperature;
- don't cook baby food in a Teflon pan, it's better to do it in an environmentally friendly cookware.
Be attentive to everything that surrounds you: fromsuch trifles as a frying pan or an iron make up our daily life. And contact with toxic substances, even in small quantities, will inevitably lead to poor he alth. Value your and your family's he alth - use organic products and sustainable dishes.
