Most of us have some level of PFAS in our blood. We are exposed to PFAS through contaminated food and water, household products or working or living in or near facilities where PFAS are made or used.
Health effects linked to PFAS include:
- Decreased response to some vaccines in children
- Increased cholesterol levels
- Decreased infant and fetal growth
- Increased risk of kidney and testicular cancer
- Hypertension and pre-eclampsia during pregnancy
While exposure to PFAS can increase the risk of having a health effect, not everyone who has higher levels of PFAS in their blood will develop a health problem. Some people will also develop these health problems without high levels of exposure to PFAS.
Talk to Your Doctor
Talk to your doctor to understand your risk of exposure. Together you can discuss whether blood testing would be appropriate. Find out the costs for testing and whether your insurance will cover them, fully or partially. If you have a private well and your drinking water has been impacted by the nearby land application of biosolids, additional resources for blood testing may be available. Get more information about the Fund to Address PFAS Contamination
PFAS Blood Testing
Blood tests are available that measure the concentration of PFAS in your blood.
A PFAS blood test can tell you the levels of specific PFAS in your body at the time of testing.
Some types of PFAS can build up in the body over time and persist for years after exposure stops, while others only persist in the body for a few weeks. Therefore, results from a blood test can reflect ongoing current exposure as well as exposure from further in the past.
Results from a PFAS blood test can tell you whether your exposure is elevated compared to levels typically seen in the U.S. population.
Results from a PFAS blood test cannot tell you if a current or past illness is due to PFAS exposure, nor can blood test results predict future health issues.
If you are concerned about an exposure from many years ago, PFAS blood testing may not be useful for you since very distant exposures (e.g. 10 years ago or more) would no longer be reflected in your blood at the time of testing.
Elevated PFAS Results
If you have very high levels of PFAS, repeated testing over time can help you and your doctor track whether exposure is decreasing. Follow-up blood testing is generally done no more than once per year.
People with higher levels of PFAS in their blood have a higher risk of developing certain health conditions. Depending on age and other risk factors, results from PFAS blood testing may help you and your doctor make decisions about ongoing health monitoring.
Additional Information
- Guidance on PFAS Exposure, Testing, and Clinician Follow-up (2022) (PDF)
- Information for Clinicians from ATSDR (PDF)
- "Clinical Implications of New Drinking Water Regulation for "Forever Chemicals" by Criswell et al. 2024
If you have questions about PFAS, blood testing, or health effects, please contact one of our toxicologists at 866-292-3474 (toll-free in Maine), 207-287-4311, or Maine Relay 711.