Key Takeaways

A cholesterol-lowering drug could help scrub toxic forever chemicals from the blood of people who have been highly exposed, according to a small study.

Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, orPFAS, is a class of millions of chemicals used to create grease- and water-resistant products like food packaging andclothes.These chemicals can stay in the body and environment for years before breaking down. Over time, PFAS can damage the liver and kidneys, weaken the immune system, increase the risk for certain cancers, and lead to reproductive problems.

Scientists and policymakers are working to limit PFAS contamination and to remove it from drinking water and food systems. Once the chemicals enter a person’s bloodstream, there are fewer tools to remove them.

A new study shows thatcholestyramine, a drug that was approved for cholesterol management 50 years ago, provides a potential treatment option for people with high PFAS exposure.

People taking the drug excreted the same amount of PFAS in three months that someone without treatment would naturally eliminate in about three and a half years, according toMorten Lindhardt, a clinical associate professor at the University of Copenhagen and lead author of the study.

“That’s pretty groundbreaking from our point of view,” Lindhardt told Verywell. “We have always tried setting up limitations in our environment or in food sources—and of course, we should continue doing that—but if we have very highly exposed individuals, we now have a potential treatment for them.”

Should You Get a Blood Test for PFAS? The CDC Says It’s Worth a Chat With Your Doctor

How Does This Drug Work to Remove PFAS?

Another cholesterol medication called colesevelam probably works the same way, the authors wrote. It also comes as a pill, which could be easier for people to take than cholestyramine powder.

Not everyone should take these cholesterol medications, Lindhardt said. They come with mild but sometimes uncomfortable gastrointestinal side effects like constipation, diarrhea, and nausea.

Scientists must test these drugs in bigger trials and in other groups before recommending them to the general population, saidLida Chatzi, MD, PhD,director of the Center for Translational Research on Environmental Health at the University of Southern California, who was not involved with the research.

Chatzi said cholestyramine might be most useful in people with high levels of PFAS anddyslipidemia, given that this class of medications is designed to managelipid levels.

If further research supports the use of cholesterol drugs for eliminating PFAS, Lindhardt said that the treatment could help “break the chain” of PFAS transmission to the next generation. To protect children, who are most vulnerable to the harms of PFAS, he suggests that women who plan to become pregnant treat their PFAS toxicity to avoidpassing the chemicalsto newborns.

Lindhardt said that some people with the greatest levels of blood PFAS might benefit from more than 12 weeks of treatment. More research is also needed to know if this approach is useful for people with lower exposures, too.

“It doesn’t make any sense trying to eliminate PFAS if you are continuously getting exposed to it in the drinking water,” Lindhardt said. “You should not see this as a method just to keep polluting. It’s actually a safety net underneath those who are still highly exposed.”

Even Kale May Contain Toxic PFAS

Removing PFAS from the Environment Is Still the Priority

“More research is needed on developing therapies to remove PFAS from the body to prevent further accumulation and reduce associated health risks,” Chatzi said. “But more importantly, all this knowledge needs to be translated into policy interventions that can help eliminate PFAS use and protect human health.”

The participants in Lindhardt’s study had high levels of perfluorooctanesulfonic acid (PFOS) in their blood due to eating meat from cattle that fed in grassy areas where firefighters tested PFAS-containing foam.

The best way to avoid that kind of exposure is to clean up the environment and stop PFAS pollution, saidCarsten Prasse, PhD,an assistant professor of environmental health and engineering at Johns Hopkins University. Cleaning up waterways is an important first step in many communities, he said.

“More research is needed on developing therapies to remove PFAS from the body to prevent further accumulation and reduce associated health risks,” Prasse said. “But more importantly, all this knowledge needs to be translated into policy interventions that can help eliminate PFAS use and protect human health.”

The EPA recently proposed to categorize nine of these chemicals as hazardous, which could make it easier to regulate their production. Last year, a team of researchers at Northwestern University said that a common soap ingredient couldbreak down PFAS in waterways in a matter of hours.

Bottled Water Is Full of Tiny Plastics. Here’s How to Make It Safer for Drinking

What This Means For YouWhile PFAS have been detected in nearly every American, not everyone should seek medical treatment. If you’re concerned about your level of PFAS toxicity, talk to a health provider about how to decrease your exposure and whether you qualify for blood testing.

What This Means For You

While PFAS have been detected in nearly every American, not everyone should seek medical treatment. If you’re concerned about your level of PFAS toxicity, talk to a health provider about how to decrease your exposure and whether you qualify for blood testing.

3 SourcesVerywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.Møller JJ, Lyngberg AC, Hammer PEC, et al.Substantial decrease of PFAS with anion exchange resin treatment - a clinical cross-over trial.Environ Int. 2024;185:108497. doi:10.1016/j.envint.2024Schymanski EL, Zhang J, Thiessen PA, Chirsir P, Kondic T, Bolton EE.Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) in PubChem: 7 million and growing.Environ Sci Technol. 2023;57(44):16918-16928. doi:10.1021/acs.est.3c04855Deng P, Durham J, Liu J, et al.Metabolomic, lipidomic, transcriptomic, and metagenomic analyses in mice exposed to PFOS and fed soluble and insoluble dietary fibers.Environ Health Perspect. 2022;130(11):117003. doi:10.1289/EHP11360

3 Sources

Verywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.Møller JJ, Lyngberg AC, Hammer PEC, et al.Substantial decrease of PFAS with anion exchange resin treatment - a clinical cross-over trial.Environ Int. 2024;185:108497. doi:10.1016/j.envint.2024Schymanski EL, Zhang J, Thiessen PA, Chirsir P, Kondic T, Bolton EE.Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) in PubChem: 7 million and growing.Environ Sci Technol. 2023;57(44):16918-16928. doi:10.1021/acs.est.3c04855Deng P, Durham J, Liu J, et al.Metabolomic, lipidomic, transcriptomic, and metagenomic analyses in mice exposed to PFOS and fed soluble and insoluble dietary fibers.Environ Health Perspect. 2022;130(11):117003. doi:10.1289/EHP11360

Verywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.

Møller JJ, Lyngberg AC, Hammer PEC, et al.Substantial decrease of PFAS with anion exchange resin treatment - a clinical cross-over trial.Environ Int. 2024;185:108497. doi:10.1016/j.envint.2024Schymanski EL, Zhang J, Thiessen PA, Chirsir P, Kondic T, Bolton EE.Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) in PubChem: 7 million and growing.Environ Sci Technol. 2023;57(44):16918-16928. doi:10.1021/acs.est.3c04855Deng P, Durham J, Liu J, et al.Metabolomic, lipidomic, transcriptomic, and metagenomic analyses in mice exposed to PFOS and fed soluble and insoluble dietary fibers.Environ Health Perspect. 2022;130(11):117003. doi:10.1289/EHP11360

Møller JJ, Lyngberg AC, Hammer PEC, et al.Substantial decrease of PFAS with anion exchange resin treatment - a clinical cross-over trial.Environ Int. 2024;185:108497. doi:10.1016/j.envint.2024

Schymanski EL, Zhang J, Thiessen PA, Chirsir P, Kondic T, Bolton EE.Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) in PubChem: 7 million and growing.Environ Sci Technol. 2023;57(44):16918-16928. doi:10.1021/acs.est.3c04855

Deng P, Durham J, Liu J, et al.Metabolomic, lipidomic, transcriptomic, and metagenomic analyses in mice exposed to PFOS and fed soluble and insoluble dietary fibers.Environ Health Perspect. 2022;130(11):117003. doi:10.1289/EHP11360

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