While famous coffee shops such as Starbucks are메이저사이트 scrambling to introduce paper straws with the advocacy of ‘eco-friendliness’, a study abroad that paper straws can be as harmful to the human body and the environment as plastic straws is attracting attention. Belgian researchers reported on the 25th (local time) German dpa
news agency that they tested whether 39 eco-friendly straw brands distributed in their country were tested for perfluorinated compounds ( PFAS ). PFAS , which is called ‘eternal chemical substance’, is a substance that is not easily decomposed naturally and is harmful to humans, animals and the environment, and is being regulated one after another in countries around the world. The researchers found that they detected PFAS in 27 of these 39 brands (69%) in two separate analyzes . A total of 18 types of PFAS were identified , and PFAS was found in all 18 (90%) paper straws, except for 2 out of 20 products . Among the other 19 products, PFAS was detected in 4 out of 5 (80%) bamboo products, 3 out of 4 plastic straws (75%), and PFAS in 2 out of 5 (40%) glass straws. stopped coming out PFAS was not detected at all in stainless steel straws .
Professor Timo Grofen of the University of Antwerp, Belgium, said, ” With the detection of PFAS in plant-based straws widely used in the United States, we confirmed the reality of straws used in supermarkets and restaurants in Belgium.” It may be because the substance was used in the waterproof coating,” he analyzed. In the case of perfluorooctanoic acid ( PFOA
) , the most detected PFAS this time, the research team has already banned its use from 2020, and other substances such as trifluoroacetic acid ( TFA ) and trifluoromethanesulfonic acid ( TFMS ) have been detected in a very short time. There was also a substance classified as PFAS that dissolves well in water . The researchers did not directly address how much PFAS contained in the straw actually dissolves in the drink in this study. The research team evaluated, “As the majority of people use straws only occasionally, the harmfulness of these straws to the human body will be limited.” However, Prof. Grofen said, “small doses of PFAS that would not in themselves be harmful.
“Straws made from plant-based materials, such as paper and bamboo, are often touted as more sustainable and environmentally friendly than plastic straws, but the existence of PFAS-filled straws is not the same . This means that advertisements may not necessarily be true.”