Diabetes risk and environmental exposure to PFAS, curbed by diet and exercise

by Lisa Rapaport for Reuters

A new study published by Dr. Andres Cardenas and colleagues from the University of California at Berkeley showed that PFAS contribute to diabetes development and that these effects can be reduced by healthy diet and exercise interventions.
PFAS (polyfluoroalkyl and perfluoroalkyl substances) are a class of chemicals that are often used to make objects stain resistant, non-stick or water resistant, among other uses.  In their study, Cardenas and coworkers tested almost 1000 people who did not have diabetes for their exposure to these chemicals and followed them over time.  They found that the participants' blood levels of several of these types of chemicals increased.  Diabetes risk factors had increased in those participants who had high levels of exposure to these chemicals and also had not participated in diet and exercise programs.  The study found that diet and exercise intervention reduced the risk of diabetes by 28%.  Interestingly, each doubling of PFA levels in the blood of participants was associated with a 17% increase risk of developing diabetes  complications, regardless of whether they participated in the diet and exercise intervention.  
Commenting on this study, I was quoted as follows:
--The findings build on previous research linking PFASs and PFOA to diabetes, said Luz Claudio, an environmental medicine and public health researcher at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai in New York City.
“It is very hard to avoid exposure to PFAs because they are in so many products and in some water supplies,” Claudio, who wasn’t involved in the study, said by email.
Nonstick cookware, however, is one source of PFA exposure that’s easily avoided by using alternatives like ceramic, stainless steel, or cast iron, Claudio advised.--

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