I think it would be odd had it not emerged white. It was white thread tape (I've never seen any other color). And it's not like it should react with the contents of my bowel.
> Secondly, how do you know no particulates were shed inside you? Surely just eyeballing it isn't going to tell you much?
You're right, except that I already knew the answer: as I mentioned in my comment I'd already used PTFE in a previous job; I've dissected and otherwise processed innumerable tissue samples from animals injected with various biocompatible polymers in the process of preclinical studies. Teflon is quite common in implanted medical devices for the very reason that it is safe and doesn't tend to break down.
Some polymers are considered safe but clear from the body through mechanisms nobody has worked out. For example the polymer fillers some people have injected to push out wrinkles are, as far as I remember, a safe mw of PEG that just seems to...go away.
I've used PEG as a drug carrier but have used the drug to determine how it was breaking down (or microscopy), rather than trying to assay the carrier itself. FDA is super concerned about the API (i.e. drug) and most excipients, but for a neutral GRAS carrier like PEG. meh. Though they do care a lot that you make sure the mw is in one of the GRAS ranges!
So.. does that mean there isn't actually anything to worry about with teflon pans? I've certainly heard claims that you can end up with particles in your food, which is bad somehow. Seems unlikely there's evidence behind that given that the pans are still sold, but then, plenty of dangerous things are. Sounds like even if it does flake off in your food, no big deal? Or can cooking it make it into something more reactive?
If you overheat it (which might happen if you leave the pan on heat with no contents, or you’re trying to cook something like steak at high heat) then it breaks down into a fairly nasty gas which is fatal to birds and gives humans flu like symptoms (exact health effects of this aren’t known).
And as other people have mentioned, the manufacturing process involves some really nasty chemicals, which often end up leaking out into the environment.
Have a look at this Ted-ed video [0]. What they basically say is that Teflon is not dangerous in itself, what is dangerous is the product they use to glue it to the pan.
If manufacturer has convinced regulators that Teflon isn't dangerous just because the danger is in something that always has to be used with Teflon and not Teflon itself, surely that's criminal?
It’s not uncommon in chemistry for two very reactive elements/compounds to combine into a molecule that is very stable and relatively benign.
Sodium and Chlorine == table salt, for instance.
Another example - Aluminum is pretty safe to be around, especially if it’s anodized.
Anodized aluminum is even perfectly safe for use as a pan for cooking pretty much any food.
Non-anodized is decently safe, just don’t use it with acidic foods. It’s common in large commercial cookware, though stainless is steadily replacing it.
You really don’t want to be exposed to the chemicals used to refine aluminum or anodize aluminum though, as they include fluorine gas, chromic acid, etc.
Same with titanium, stainless steel (albeit stainless generally doesn’t need a secondary coating), etc.
I have some that's pale pearly gray. Not sure if they just cheaped out on a colorant or something, but it's definitely bargain-basement stuff so that wouldn't surprise me.
> I think it would be odd had it not emerged white. It was white thread tape
You seem to be implying that it also was white when it went in? This wasn't stated in the parent post. But in that case, emerging white, same as when it went in, is a good outcome.
Firstly, "it's always white" is domain-specific knowledge that most of us don't have. I've seen the white plumbing tape for sure, but I didn't make universal assumptions based on that.
> Firstly, "it's always white" is domain-specific knowledge that most of us don't have.
How is common home repair supplies count as "domain-specific"? You don't have some teflon tape in a storage drawer somewhere in your house? Have you never replaced a faucet aerator or shower head?
As to the other tape, that's apparently for gas connections (I've never of it personally) when the original poster specifically specified plumbing tape.
> You don't have some teflon tape in a storage drawer somewhere in your house?
Probably, I'd have to look. But like I said "the last one that I saw was white" is one thing, "it's always white" is another very different thing. Is this a standard that it _has to be white_? If you can't answer that, then you have no case at all that it's not "domain specific knowledge".
I think it would be odd had it not emerged white. It was white thread tape (I've never seen any other color). And it's not like it should react with the contents of my bowel.
> Secondly, how do you know no particulates were shed inside you? Surely just eyeballing it isn't going to tell you much?
You're right, except that I already knew the answer: as I mentioned in my comment I'd already used PTFE in a previous job; I've dissected and otherwise processed innumerable tissue samples from animals injected with various biocompatible polymers in the process of preclinical studies. Teflon is quite common in implanted medical devices for the very reason that it is safe and doesn't tend to break down.
Some polymers are considered safe but clear from the body through mechanisms nobody has worked out. For example the polymer fillers some people have injected to push out wrinkles are, as far as I remember, a safe mw of PEG that just seems to...go away.
I've used PEG as a drug carrier but have used the drug to determine how it was breaking down (or microscopy), rather than trying to assay the carrier itself. FDA is super concerned about the API (i.e. drug) and most excipients, but for a neutral GRAS carrier like PEG. meh. Though they do care a lot that you make sure the mw is in one of the GRAS ranges!