Give Up Nonstick Cookware

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Non-stick cookware provides easy cleanup and requires the use of less oil and butter, which in turn leads to less calories in your meals. But like all things that are easy, there is a price to pay for cutting corners. Some non-stick cookware is building up a reputation for being potentially toxic and dangerous for your health, the health of unborn children and (if you have them) pet birds.

Good Housekeeping researched the safety of non-stick cookware and found that its only a dangerous when heated above 500-degrees (F). At that temperature, the toxic compounds used to make the non-stick coating are released. While 500-degrees may sound too high to hit for a quick meal, it's actually a lot easier than you think. It only takes a little thing like a change in the low/med/high setting or forgetting about a heating pan for a minute. Good Housekeeping points out, "At very high temperatures — 660° F and above — pans may more significantly decompose, emitting fumes strong enough to cause polymer-fume fever, a temporary flu-like condition marked by chills, headache, and fever."

Adults will survive this exposure, but pet birds have been known to die from exposure to the fumes. As concerning are longterm effects from small exposures. Unborn babies, when exposed in the womb to the two chemicals found in non-stick cookware—PFOA and PFOS, have birth weights lower than babies who have not been exposed. PFOA is expected to be phased out of products by 2015, but it may be too little too late since low levels of PFOA can be found in the blood of 95% of Americans.

You may be giving up a small convenience in the long run, but until non-stick cookware is made in a safer manner, it might be best to spend a few more minutes cleaning up at the end of the night. Choose stainless steel or cast iron cookware instead.

Related: 6 Surprising Sources of Indoor Air Pollution

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