PFAS Alert For Physicians & Health Care Professionals

This fact sheet from the Canadian Association of Physicians for the Environment (CAPE) outlines the health risks associated with per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), their prevalence in the Canadian population, and the current regulatory efforts to manage them as a chemical class.

• PFAS are a group of over 4,700 synthetic chemicals used in various industrial and consumer products, including textiles, cookware, firefighting foam, and personal care products, due to their stability and resistance to degradation.
• Exposure to PFAS is widespread in Canada, with a national sample showing that 98.5% of the population had at least three types of these chemicals in their blood. They accumulate in the body via drinking water, soil, food, household dust, and contact with products.
• PFAS exposure is linked to a wide range of severe health issues, including cancer, cardiovascular disease, liver toxicity, thyroid disease, infertility, immune suppression, asthma, Alzheimer’s disease, and low infant birth weight.
• Certain populations are disproportionately affected by the negative health effects of PFAS, specifically infants, children, pregnant people, older adults, people living in poverty, Indigenous and racialized people, and potentially disabled people or those with existing health conditions.
• The Canadian Government is currently modifying the Canadian Environmental Protection Act (CEPA) to list PFAS as a class of toxic substances to enable regulation or bans. This class-based approach is advocated by CAPE and other groups because the shared properties of the thousands of PFAS chemicals warrant comprehensive risk management.

APA

Canadian Association of Physicians for the Environment (n.d.). PFAS Alert For Physicians & Health Care Professionals. https://cape.ca/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/PFAS-Alert.pdf

Chicago

Canadian Association of Physicians for the Environment. PFAS Alert For Physicians & Health Care Professionals. n.d. https://cape.ca/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/PFAS-Alert.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=Canadian Association of Physicians for the Environment |title=PFAS Alert For Physicians & Health Care Professionals |url=https://cape.ca/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/PFAS-Alert.pdf |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{canadianassociationofphysiciansfortheenvironmentndpfas, author = {{Canadian Association of Physicians for the Environment}}, title = {{PFAS Alert For Physicians \& Health Care Professionals}}, institution = {Canadian Association of Physicians for the Environment}, url = {https://cape.ca/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/PFAS-Alert.pdf}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }