4 hours ago
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It seems like every week there is a new scientific study about microplastics in food, Pfas in pans, BPA in plastic containers, or any other number of toxic chemicals that can stow away in our food.
I’ve been writing about toxic chemicals for years, and my friends always ask me: what do I do about it all? The list of things to worry about can seem overwhelming.
I have waded through the science – as well as the marketing materials from companies that want to assure us their products are safe – with the goal of ridding my kitchen and the food I cook of dangerous chemicals.
And I have some simple suggestions on how you can do it, too.
In collaboration with Consumer Reports, the leading independent consumer organization in the US, the Guardian has created a newsletter featuring my seven-week course on detoxing your kitchen. You can sign up here.
It’s launching in just a few days, with guidance on everything from fruit and vegetables to meat, seafood and cookware. Until then, here are three fixes you can do right now.
Spatulas and spoons
Plastic hangs out in the kitchen before, during and after every meal: coffee makers to start the day, sandwiches wrapped in baggies at lunch, spatulas used to prepare dinner, the containers in the fridge holding the midnight snack. It’s ubiquitous.
It can also contain around 16,000 chemicals, and thousands of those are thought to be “highly hazardous”. Chemicals and microplastics can leach at higher rates when they are heated or come into contact with hot food and drink, making plastic even less ideal for kitchen use.
Fortunately, for almost every plastic kitchen product, there is a safer wood, borosilicate glass, silicone or stainless steel alternative. These are easy to find, often cheap, and can go a long way to reducing the amount of chemicals you’re exposed to in your diet.
I think utensils are a good place to start when reconsidering your plastic use because the alternatives are cheap and widely available (though you’ll want to try to recycle, if possible, any plastic you decide to throw out). It’s also a meaningful place to begin because putting a plastic spatula on a hot pan, or tongs in boiling water, for example, can cause a small dose of chemicals to leach. Try these wood, stainless steel or silicone options instead.
Basic cookware
There’s a lot to think about when buying pots and pans. Nonstick cookware can contain PFAS or other potentially dangerous chemicals, while some pieces of popular ceramics and enameled cast iron have been found contain lead or other toxic heavy metals. There is a lot of marketing around pans that are “eco”, “green”, and so on, but those are terms that don’t have a legal definition, so they could be meaningless.
The best way to go about it is to rely on tried and true materials that we know are safe and abundantly available: stainless steel, cast iron and glass.
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Few days go by when I don’t use my SolidTeknics Noni skillet made with high quality, ferritic stainless steel containing low levels of nickel, a metal that can trigger allergies and is potentially toxic at high levels. It’s also made of one seamless steel piece instead of multiple components and materials that can contain heavy metals.
My Made-in carbon steel pan also seems to be free of toxins and functions similarly to non-enameled cast iron pans, which are another generally safe option. I also use a glass saucepan, though look out for older models that have been found to contain lead.
For pasta and stews, I use an eight-quart HomiChef stock pot made with a high quality, stainless steel.
Cutting boards
About a decade ago, I replaced my plastic cutting board, which can shed microplastics into food, with one made of bamboo that I assumed was less toxic. But I later discovered that bamboo is often made of multiple wood pieces assembled with glue that contains formaldehyde, which can cause rashes, eye irritation, changes in lung function and might be a carcinogen.
Though bamboo boards produced with “safe” glue exist, they can also be made with toxic melamine-formaldehyde resins that are linked to kidney problems, endocrine disruption and neurological issues. Bamboo products now often come with California government Proposition 65 warnings, stating that the product may contain some chemicals known to cause cancer.
When looking for a cutting board, try to find those made from a single piece of wood that has not been glued. Treeboard is among the few companies I found using a single piece of wood and safe finish.
