Exposure to per- and Polyfluoroalkyl Substances (PFAS) in North Carolina Homes: Results from the Indoor PFAS Assessment (IPA) Campaign

Details

• Personal Author:
  Chang NY ; Cohen Hubal EA ; Eichler CMA ; Morrison GC ; Surratt JD ; Turpin BJ
• Description:
  Per and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) are ubiquitous in the indoor environment, resulting in indoor exposure. However, a dearth of concurrent indoor multi-compartment PFAS measurements, including air, has limited our understanding of the contributions of each exposure pathway to residential PFAS exposure. As part of the Indoor PFAS Assessment (IPA) Campaign, we measured 35 neutral and ionic PFAS in air, settled dust, drinking water, clothing, and on surfaces in 11 North Carolina homes. Ionic and neutral PFAS measurements reported previously and ionic PFAS measurements reported herein for drinking water (1.4-34.1 ng L-1), dust (202-1036 ng g-1), and surfaces (4.1 × 10-4-1.7 × 10-2 ng cm-2) were used to conduct a residential indoor PFAS exposure assessment. We considered inhalation of air, ingestion of drinking water and dust, mouthing of clothing (children only), and transdermal uptake from contact with dust, air, and surfaces. Average intake rates were estimated to be 3.6 ng kg-1 per day (adults) and 12.4 ng kg-1 per day (2 year-old), with neutral PFAS contributing over 80% total PFAS intake. Excluding dietary ingestion, which was not measured, inhalation contributed over 65% of PFAS intake and was dominated by neutral PFAS because fluorotelomer alcohol (FTOH) concentrations in air were several orders of magnitude greater than ionic PFAS concentrations. Perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA) intake was 6.1 × 10-2 ng kg-1 per day (adults) and 1.5 × 10-1 ng kg-1 per day (2 year-old), and biotransformation of 8 : 2 FTOH to PFOA increased this PFOA body burden by 14% (adults) and 17% (2 year-old), suggesting inhalation may also be a meaningful contributor to ionic PFAS exposure through biotransformation. [Description provided by NIOSH]
• Subjects:
  Dust Occupational Health Safety
• Keywords:
  Clothing Drinking Water Dust Inhalation Exposure Assessment Indoor Environments Per- And Polyfluoroalkyl Substances PFAS
• ISSN:
  2050-7887
• Document Type:
  Text
• Funding:
  Grant
• Genre:
  Journal Article
• Place as Subject:
  Atlanta Region [OSHA] ; North Carolina
• CIO:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH)
• Topic:
  Workplace Safety & Health
• Location:
  North America
• NIOSHTIC Number:
  nn:20070331
• Citation:
  Environ Sci Process Impacts 2024 Nov; :[Epub ahead of print]
• Contact Point Address:
  Barbara J. Turpin, Department of Environmental Sciences and Engineering, Gillings School of Global Public Health, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC, USA
• Email:
  bjturpin@email.unc.edu
• Federal Fiscal Year:
  2025
• Performing Organization:
  University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill
• Peer Reviewed:
  True
• Start Date:
  20050701
• Source Full Name:
  Environmental Science: Processes & Impacts
• End Date:
  20270630
• Collection(s):
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha-512:d48dce78049525a66a0756586efccdbb4cfaf03aa4933d7ebffffd8d040e90d99b9a313a65e8e89db4e5f0ccbabe30812315b60a32ee833881df5bb37c159ca0
• Download URL:
  https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/208564/cdc_208564_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 926.71 KB ]