Fitness and wellness influencers often boast that their biological age is far lower than their chronological age. Indeed, the term “biological age” has been trending on Google since the start of 2026. Now, research suggests that exposure to certain PFAS chemicals could accelerate biological aging, especially for middle aged men.
What are PFAS chemicals?
PFAS is short for per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances. This is a huge collection of synthetic chemicals that has been widely used since the 1950s in many applications around the home and in industry. PFAS compounds have many desirable properties and they are used when you want products to be:
- Water resistant
- Greaseproof
- Stain resistant
- Low friction/non-stick
Many household name brands were originally based on PFAS chemicals, including Scotchgard®, Goretex®, and Teflon®. However, PFAS chemicals come with some catches: They are extremely hard to break down in the environment or body and they are known to cause serious health problems.
What does the research look at?
The new research, led by a team from Shanghai Jiao Tong University, looks at the role of certain PFAS chemicals in epigenetic aging. That is a scientifically proven way to measure how quickly our bodies are actually aging by looking at cumulative changes in our DNA. The study relies on new approaches that estimate epigenetic aging based on biomarkers, rather than the traditional approach of measuring the length of telomeres.
The key result of the study is that two specific PFAS chemicals are strongly linked with increases in epigenetic aging for middle-aged men. The two chemicals are PFNA (perfluorononanoic acid) and PFOSA (perfluorooctanesulfonamide). PFOSA is used in some stain resistant coatings. It is also metabolized into PFOS in the body. Meanwhile, PFNA is found in over 90% of patients we test in our lab.
What were the findings?
The results come from a meta-analysis of over 300 participants in the National Health and Nutrition Examination Study (NHANES) in 1999-2000. This study formed part of an ongoing biomonitoring study run by the US CDC. The data is especially useful as the study conducted a huge range of blood tests, measurements, and health surveys.
Looking in more detail at the results, it seems that PFNA and PFOSA have different impacts on biological aging. That is, they affect a different set of biomarkers that are linked with aging. But what is clear is that they both have a statistically greater effect on aging in men aged 50-64 compared with women, or with other age groups. Moreover, this effect is linked specifically with these 2 chemicals, not the other 9 PFAS measured in the study.
What other health effects are linked with PFAS?
PFAS chemicals have been linked with a whole host of unpleasant health effects. So much so that many jurisdictions have started to ban their use or impose strict controls on how much is allowed in drinking water. Specifically, PFAS has been linked to:
- Cancers of the bladder, kidneys, and liver
- Heart disease and dislipidemia
- Kidney and liver disease
- Male infertility
- Premature birth and reduced birth weight
- Reduced immune response (especially to vaccines)
What can you do if you’re worried about PFAS?
PFAS have earned the nickname of “forever chemicals” because they persist for so long in the environment. Fortunately, there are things you can do to reduce your exposure.
One key step is to reduce your exposure to fast food packaging. Almost all paper-based packaging is coated with PFAS to make it waterproof and greaseproof. Probably the worst offender here is microwave popcorn bags. These are thickly coated with PFAS that is also sat in contact with the popcorn for months and then heated to high temperatures. This combination makes it extremely likely to leach PFAS into the delicious popcorn you just made!
Another key source of PFAS exposure is drinking water. Up to 100M US residents have excessively high PFAS in their drinking water. So, a great way to reduce PFAS exposure is to filter all your drinking water. Evidence shows that even simple active carbon filters can reduce PFAS significantly. You might think the answer is to switch to bottled water, but there’s good evidence that this is also often contaminated with PFAS.
Should I get tested?
If you are really worried about your PFAS exposure, or if you are in a group that is at increased risk, you probably should consider getting a blood test. There are a couple of options available here. You could book a blood draw at a phlebotomy lab. But many people find it more convenient to take tests from the comfort of home. That’s why we sell at-home PFAS tests that just need a few drops of blood to give you accurate results for the most common PFAS chemicals.
