Reacción a "International fish trade increases risk of PFAS exposure worldwide"

The study is of high scientific quality and stands out for its ambition and methodological rigour. It integrates global data on PFAS contamination in the marine environment, models of bioaccumulation in food webs, fish consumption and international trade, covering more than 99% of global marine fish production. This approach allows us to go beyond local or purely analytical studies and provides an unprecedented systemic view of how human exposure to PFAS depends not only on local environmental pollution, but also on the dynamics of global food trade. The results fit well with previous evidence identifying fish as a significant source of dietary exposure to PFAS, but they add a key element: the international redistribution of risk, with Europe as a central player in exposure flows, even to countries with relatively low environmental levels. 

From a public health perspective, the study reinforces concerns about C8-PFAS (PFOA and PFOS), which are highly persistent, bioaccumulative compounds associated in numerous studies with endocrine, immunological, metabolic and developmental disorders, as well as an increased risk of certain cancers. Although the study is based on risk assessment (hazard index) rather than direct clinical effects, its results have clear regulatory implications: they show that restrictions on PFOS have been effective, but also that unregulated long-chain PFAS continue to pose a high risk, especially through the food trade.

One limitation to bear in mind is that the analysis focuses solely on marine fish and does not include other dietary or environmental sources, so total exposure may be underestimated. Even so, the study provides robust evidence to support stricter food safety policies, control criteria in international trade and broader regulation of PFAS as a group, rather than addressing compounds individually.