Fitness Blog Update - Monday, May 4

Hi, gals! It’s May, can you believe it?! I have always had an affinity for this month. I’m a May baby (47 on Thursday—name it and claim it; we’re all moving at the same rate!), my oldest daughter is a May baby, too, and my baby follows shortly thereafter on June 5. Thankfully, she didn’t come on her due date, which was HER SISTER’S BIRTHDAY!!! I had a big party planned for Camille’s 4th birthday; that would have been a major distraction! Of course, there's Mother's Day. And school gets out the end of the month. I was always a mom who looked forward to my children being out of school and home for the summer. This one is going to fly—high school graduation, college orientation (go Tigers!), a week of science and engineering camp for Aubrey at Clemson, hopefully a little relaxation somewhere in between, and moving her into the dorm. Enjoy each moment, even the challenging ones. You’ll be where I am now before you know it. So cliché but so true.

Well, I shared with you my aversion to aspartame a few weeks ago. Now I’ll share another one—Teflon, specifically relating to cookware. You don’t see the name “Teflon” anymore; now you see “non-stick”. Always be leery of a product that changes its name. Here’s why it is not in my house anymore.

First of all—a little history. Teflon is the brand name of polytetraflouroethylene (PTFE) and is a registered trademark of DuPont. It was discovered by DuPont chemist Dr. Roy Plunkett in 1938. As he was conducting experiments on tetraflouroethylene, a substance associated with Freon refrigerants, he noticed that a frozen sample plasticized into another substance called polytetraflouroethylene, a slippery substance that is inert under almost any chemical condition. This substance was given the name Teflon, and the rest is, as they say, history. Here’s the rub—toxic gases are released when non-stick materials are heated to a certain point. Here’s another interesting fact we learned because of Lucky. DuPont publicly acknowledges that Teflon can kill birds (Teflon toxicosis) under ordinary cooking scenarios. Pet birds have died when their owners have cooked with Teflon at temperatures as low as 300 degrees. So if you have pet birds, be especially cautious. If you have a stove burner cooking on medium heat, that is roughly 390 degrees. DuPont’s own tests indicate that gases potentially toxic to humans are released at 446 degrees. At 680 degrees, Teflon pans emit six serious toxins. Perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA) is a synthetic chemical used in the manufacture of non-stick products. PFOA causes cancer in rats and is especially toxic to young animals. Each molecule of PFOA made does not break down; it contaminates the environment, the food chain, and the population. DuPont steadfastly denies the danger of PFOA but has agreed to phase out its use by 2015. A former top engineer of DuPont detailed the company’s cover-up of contaminating human blood for 18 years. DuPont agreed to pay the largest administrative EPA fine in history, $16.5 million, but a fraction of the possible maximum fine of $314 million. Teflon-related products (remember, DuPont has the Teflon trademark) have estimated sales of $2 billion per year.

So now what? And guess what? Non-stick coatings are in many consumer products—Stainmaster carpets, fast food containers, stain resistant fabrics (including some clothing), packaging for some food items, and microwave popcorn bags, just to name a few. Scientific data suggests that consumers who use non-stick cookware cook at low temperatures and never preheat without food or liquid to reduce toxic gas emissions. Avoid using metal utensils; scratching the non-stick surface shortens the pan’s life span and may make it less stable. For similar reasons, avoid stacking non-stick pans. It is a good idea to turn on the range hood fan when heating up a Teflon pan. Personally, I don’t cook with Teflon (or non-stick); I have stainless pans. I don’t cook in plastics in the microwave, either, including all of the new frozen food items in plastic packaging. It reminds me of another interesting scenario. When my mother was pregnant with me, doctors recommended that pregnant women smoke to keep from gaining too much weight. We all know how that one turned out.

So in the final analysis, you have to make choices, based on the knowledge you have, that you believe are best for your family. Sure, at times it seems like everything has been good/bad for us at one time or another. But there are some facts that can’t be denied; they can be covered up, or ignored, or deliberately misrepresented, but that does not deny their truth. I chose to err on the side of caution, especially when there are safer alternatives. Some people say you can’t cook as well without non-stick cookware. My family would beg to differ. And we eat very well. I wasn’t there, but I don’t think Noah’s wife had Teflon on the ark, and they got along just fine without it!

Well, I’m stepping off my soapbox now. But I share the information that I do because I love each of you. I’m so proud of you—how you are working to take care of yourselves so you can take care of your families. Keep up the good work! It’s worth it; you’re worth it! Blessings—Suzanne.

“For we are His workmanship (some translations say masterpiece), created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them.” Eph. 2:10