„Forever Chemicals“ (PFAS), die das Trinkwasser in Städten in den USA verunreinigen, verursachen jährliche soziale Kosten von mindestens 8 Milliarden US-Dollar

>The study, published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, builds on previous research into how PFAS – per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances – can negatively impact health when the chemicals contaminate drinking water. The research team studied all births in New Hampshire from 2010-2019, focusing on mothers living near PFAS-contaminated sites.
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>The research shows that mothers receiving water from wells that are „downstream“ (in groundwater terms) of PFAS-contaminated sites, as opposed to comparable mothers receiving water from „upstream“ wells, had higher first-year infant mortality, more preterm births (including more births before even 28 weeks), and more births with infants weighing less than 5.5 pounds (including more births with weights less than even 2.2 pounds). These findings build on earlier laboratory and public health research but offer new evidence from real-world exposure across a large population.
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>Extrapolating to the contiguous U.S., PFAS contamination imposes costs of at least $8 billion on the babies born each year, which encompasses medical care, long-term health impacts and reduced lifetime earnings. The results indicate that the potential health benefits of PFAS cleanup and regulation may be substantial.

>“We found really substantial impacts on infant health, which expanded on what others before us had found,“ Langer said. „What we then do is calculate how these negative birth outcomes follow these children throughout their lives. The numbers we found represent the lowest end of the economic impact – we suspect it is even more.“

[PFAS-contaminated drinking water harms infants | PNAS](https://www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/pnas.2509801122)