Stain-repelling chemicals help keep carpets, upholstery and clothing clean — but the compounds may be messing up the body. Higher blood levels of the synthetic chemical perfluorooctanoic acid, or PFOA, are linked to thyroid diseases, scientists report online in Environmental Health Perspectives. It is the first report of such a connection between the widely used chemical and thyroid diseases in people and should prompt further studies, scientists say.
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