Keep Dioxins Out of Your Coffee with Unbleached Filters
So many of us need a caffeine jolt from coffee to get our days started. Nothing is wrong with that. But, you should know, especially if you brew your own coffee at home, that there are dioxins in your bleached coffee filters! Yes, dioxins, which are carcinogenic chlorinated hydrocarbons that add up in our bodies and stay in the environment. Dioxins are persistent organic pollutants, meaning that they can move within the ecosystem, as well as from coffee filters to the coffee. Actually, almost 25 percent of the residual dioxins in bleached coffee filters can end up in brewed coffee and become ingested. Dioxins bio-accumulate, making drinking small amounts regularly add up to dangerous levels. The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has found that the exposure to dioxins from bleached coffee filters alone is enough to exceed the lifetime “acceptable” limit of dioxins (there really is no “safe” level).
Fortunately, unbleached coffee filters are available, and using them are a great way to have dioxin-free coffee. You can even order them online from Amazon.com below. Don’t forget to use a reusable mug!
Adrien Catmull
Interesting post I must say.. Simple but really entertaining and interesting.. Keep up the great work!
January 19th, 2011 at 1:42 pmMarshall
Check out the last page of this EPA report from 2003:
“EPA, the Food and Drug Administration, and the Consumer Product Safety Commission have jointly conducted a comprehensive examination of dioxin risks associated with paper and paper products. This review has included food contact papers such as coffee filters and food packaging, medical products devices such as tampons and surgical dressings, and consumer products like disposable diapers and writing paper.
“The three agencies have concluded that none of these products poses a significant risk from dioxin exposure.”
You can find the report here:
http://www.epa.gov/ncea/pdfs/dioxin/factsheets/dioxin_regs.pdf
I had heard that one could become exposed to dioxin from bleached filters and have used unbleached ones for decades because of it. But, I guess it’s an urban myth. I’ll still use unbleached ones anyway.
March 4th, 2011 at 11:55 am