The Nonstick pans are usually considered convenient to use because of its non stick coating . People all around the world mostly use nonstick cookware . Having a non-stick coating on pans saves time and energy. A non-stick coating also allows for cooking with less butter or oil.
According to reports, In 1954, French engineer Marc Grigoire invented the first PTFE-coated nonstick cooking pans (brand name: Tefal) at the suggestion of his wife.
With the convenience of simple to use and easy to clean ,non stick cookware gained popularity because of their durability and frictionless surface.
But apart from their convenient features these nonstick cookware come with health hazards as well. Do you remember when was the last time you discarded or replaced your old non stick pan ? If you have been still using your old non stick pan which has shown signs of warping , discoloration or scatched then its high time to discard your old pan.
According to reports, before 2013, Teflon was used while manufacturing pans , Teflon contained a hazardous man-made chemical called Perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA) which are proven to have cancer causing chemicals. However now Teflon is required to be manufactured without containing these dangerous compounds. But if scratches are found in nonstick pans then this means the nonstick Teflon surface has been compromised and the chemicals in it can find the route into your food.
According to an Australian research study , If cooking is done in damaged nonstick pans it may lead release of millions of micro- and nanoplastics.
A lot of particles come off from degraded cooking pans .As per reports researchers at Flinders University and Newcastle collaborated on the study and discovered that scratched nonstick coatings can release approximately 2.3 million microplastics (particles less than 5 millimetres in diameter) and nano plastics (particles less than 1 micrometre in diameter).
Dr Cheng Fang, from the University of Newcastle and co-author of the study, said, “We estimate that thousands to millions of Teflon microplastics and nanoplastics might be released during [the] cooking process, depending on the use and cooking style/habit, pan/pot age/materials.”
