91Ƶ

Graham Peaslee

Experimental Nuclear Physics

Phone
574-631-7554
Email
gpeaslee@nd.edu

Professor

  • Experimental nuclear physics
  • Per- and Polyfluoroalkyl Substances (PFAS)
  • Environmental lead

Peaslee’s 91Ƶ

Peaslee in the News

People

Researchers from the University of Notre Dame tested 22 bands from various price points that are commonly available for purchase in the US. They found that the most expensive ones (retailing for more than $15) contained the largest concentration of the chemicals, according to a study published in Environmental Science and Technology

“The most remarkable thing we found in this study was the very high concentrations of just one PFAS — there were some samples above 1,000 parts per billion of PFHxA, which is much higher than most PFAS we have seen in consumer products,” said Graham Peaslee, study co-author and professor emeritus in the Department of Physics and Astronomy.

The University of Notre Dame study checked for PFAS, or markers of the chemicals, in 22 common brands.

UPI

The bands contain a class of synthetic chemicals present in many everyday products, such as cookware, cosmetics and food packaging, researchers from the University of Notre Dame in Notre Dame, Ind., noted.

According to a new study from the University of Notre Dame, your smartwatch band is exposing your wrist to so-called forever chemicals.

Chemistry World

Researchers at the University of Notre Dame in Indiana, tested 22 wristbands across various brands and prices.

WJLA

“We discovered of these 22 watch bands that we looked at, that there was PFAS in many of them,” said physicist Dr Graham Peaslee.

TechRadar

Scientists from the University of Notre Dame have called for more comprehensive studies and greater transparency from manufacturers after a study found elevated levels of so-called "forever chemicals" in some consumer smartwatch and fitness tracker bands.

“This discovery stands out because of the very high concentrations of one type of forever chemical found in items that are in prolonged contact with our skin,” said Graham Peaslee, University of Notre Dame professor and the lead author of the study.

“This discovery stands out because of the very high concentrations of one type of forever chemical found in items that are in prolonged contact with our skin,” said corresponding author Graham Peaslee, a University of Notre Dame PFAS expert and nuclear physicist, in a statement.

The Daily Record

Professor Graham Peaslee, who co-authored the study, said: “This discovery stands out because of the very high concentrations of one type of forever chemical found in items that are in prolonged contact with our skin.”

SciTech Daily

This discovery stands out because of the very high concentrations of one type of forever chemical found in items that are in prolonged contact with our skin,” explains Graham Peaslee, the corresponding author of the study.

Technology Networks

When asked about the relative risks of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) exposure, Graham Peaslee recalls the story of an Australian firefighter who was being studied by a colleague.

The Dallas Express

Dr. Graham Peaslee, a physicist at the University of Notre Dame, maintains that dangerous levels of carcinogenic Per- and Polyfluoroalkyl Substances (PFAS) — chemicals that have properties that allow them to repel water, dirt, and oil — are present in Dyess’ drinking water.

Graham Peaslee, a University of Notre Dame physicist and one of the researchers behind the cosmetics study, urged consumers to avoid products that claim to have a "miraculous property," or are described as "long-lasting." 

The Cool Down

As Graham Peaslee, a physics professor at the University of Notre Dame, explains to the Post: "We are coating ourselves in this stuff every day, so the long-term prognosis is that a lot of this stuff can go through the skin and at surprising rates."

The Philadelphia Inquirer (Subscription)

The Inquirer shared that report with two experts on forever chemicals: Graham Peaslee, a physicist at the University of Notre Dame, and Kyla Bennett, a former EPA official who now directs science policy for Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility.

These findings follow a from the University of Notre Dame which found polyfluoroalkyl chemicals — or PFAs, also known as "forever chemicals" — in 123 menstrual products sold in the U.S. 

Waterproof cosmetics like mascara, long-wear matte lipsticks and waterproof clothing are examples of products with PFAS that could be absorbed through the skin, said Graham Peaslee, a physics professor at the University of Notre Dame who frequently tests for PFAS in everyday products.

The Cool Down

A landmark study by the University of Notre Dame found PFAS in tampon applicators, period underwear, disposable and reusable pads, and plastic wrappers, sounding the alarm for the safety of people who menstruate.

Professor of Physics at the University of Notre Dame Graham Peaslee said, "They are a class of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, and they are all man-made. There's about 12,000 to 14,000, depending on how you count, and they are the ones that are created, they last forever in our environment and they get stuck in our bodies and the food that we eat and in the water we drink."

FOX5 NY

Video

Researchers at the University of Notre Dame tested more than 230 commonly-used cosmetics from top brands.

A leading expert on the topic at the University of Notre Dame says the rule will save lives.

She reached out to Graham Peaslee, a professor at the University of Notre Dame who was already well-known for discovering the presence of PFAS in fast food packaging. 

If PFAS is in 45% of US water systems, the country will have a lot of work to do, said Dr. Graham Peaslee, a professor in the Department of Physics and Astronomy and concurrent professor of chemistry and biochemistry who does PFAS research at the University of Notre Dame.

North Carolina Health News

A study published in 2020 by University of Notre Dame researcher Graham Peaslee and colleagues found that PFAS compounds on the gear’s outer shell eventually degrade into dust particles that can become unstable and shed.

Chemical & Engineering News

Graham Peaslee, a PFAS scientist at the University of Notre Dame, also testified against the bill at both hearings. 

The Philadelphia Inquirer

Graham Peaslee, a University of Notre Dame physicist, first determined that firefighters’ equipment contained PFAS in 2018, after he studied 43 pieces of new and used turnout gear.

The FDA’s announcement “is a huge win for the public,” said Graham Peaslee, a physics professor at the University of Notre Dame who frequently tests for PFAS in everyday products.

The Philadelphia Inquirer

“Purely misleading testing that no reputable lab would do,” Graham Peaslee, a physicist at the University of Notre Dame, and a widely recognized expert on PFAS, wrote in an email to the newspaper.

The Philadelphia Inquirer (Subscription)

It may take as long as 10 years for more definitive studies to be complete, said Graham Peaslee, a physicist at the University of Notre Dame who has spent years studying PFAS compounds, particularly in turf, cosmetics, food packaging and firefighters’ turnout gear.

Graham Peaslee, a physics and astronomy professor, is a leading authority on PFAS, often called “forever chemicals” that are in all sorts of everyday products because of their ability to resist water, stains, grease and heat.

Indianapolis Star

Graham Peaslee of the University of Notre Dame focused his research on firefighter gear.

WFYI

University of Notre Dame professor Graham Peaslee said we’re discovering new toxic effects of PFAS all the time and these chemicals will far outlive us all.

Technology Networks

More innovative methods like particle induced gamma-ray emission (PIGE) spectroscopy, pioneered by Dr. Graham Peaslee at the University of Notre Dame, is a rapid screening method for total fluorine, which is a marker for PFAS but includes non-PFAS too.”

One of the first people she emailed those results to, in the summer of 2020, was Graham Peaslee, a nuclear physicist at the University of Notre Dame who’d pioneered a novel technique for revealing the presence of PFAS in everyday items. 

Cotter sent patches of gear to Graham Peaslee, a University of Notre Dame professor who studies PFAS, for testing.

Researchers, including Graham Peaslee from the University of Notre Dame in the US, said while these products are designed to make people feel comfortable during a menstrual bleed, their labels do not usually list the ingredients.

Researchers from the University of Notre Dame studied more than 120 different menstruation products — menstrual cups, pads, underwear and tampons — sold in the United States.

In early 2023, we bought and mailed 44 different products to Graham Peaslee, whose University of Notre Dame lab studies PFAS in the environment and has performed tens of thousands of tests looking for signs of contamination with these substances in consumer products.

"[PFAs] have demonstrated environmental persistence, can bioaccumulate, and are known to have human and environmental toxicity," research lead Graham Peaslee, a professor at the University of Notre Dame, told Newsweek

NWI

Graham Peaslee, a professor from Notre Dame University, and Leah Zimmer, a Notre Dame student, prepare to head out to collect dust samples in Gary.

"We've since discovered that all these PFAS are immune suppressants, so they suppress your immune system and that means any opportunistic disease, including some types of cancer, could take over," said Graham Peaslee, who is a biochemist.

If PFAS is in 45% of US water systems, the country will have a lot of work to do, said Dr. Graham Peaslee, a professor in the Department of Physics and Astronomy and concurrent professor of chemistry and biochemistry who does PFAS research at the University of Notre Dame.

“For the average consumer, there’s no way to avoid it,” said Graham Peaslee, a physics professor at the University of Notre Dame. “But, you can do some smart things.”

WBUR

“I got one of the 6,000 emails she sent,” recalled Graham Peaslee, a physics professor at the University of Notre Dame, who studies PFAS.

WVPE

But many firefighters and experts argue the standard set by that test is unreasonable. Among them is Graham Peaslee, a University of Notre Dame professor, who has used applied nuclear physics to measure and study PFAS in clothing, firefighter gear and various other materials.

Connecticut Public Radio

Researchers at the University of Notre Dame found PFAS, sometimes called "forever chemicals," in 52% of cosmetics. 

The University of Notre Dame has recently conducted a study to determine if products containing PFAS (per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances) could negatively impact human health. 

Philadelphia Inquirer (subscription)

Researchers at the University of Notre Dame tested additional samples of the Vet’s turf, and also found the chemicals.

Philadelphia Inquirer (subscription)

Reporters purchased these turf samples from four individual sellers on eBay, and had two pieces tested at the Lancaster, Pa., laboratory of Eurofins Scientific, an international group of 900 labs in 50 countries, and two samples at a lab at the University of Notre Dame.

Technology Networks

“Not only did we measure significant concentrations of PFAS in these containers, we can estimate the PFAS that were leaching off creating a direct path of exposure,” said Graham Peaslee, professor of physics in the Department of Physics and Astronomy at Notre Dame and an author of the study.

Philadelphia Inquirer (subscription)

“Once PFAS gets into [a person’s] blood, they circulate through all the organs,” said Graham Peaslee, a physicist at the University of Notre Dame who has spent years studying PFAS compounds.

Buzzfeed News

“One of the companies was using PFAS on the inner side of the underwear, which is really an odd place to use it,” said Graham Peaslee, professor and PFAS researcher at the University of Notre Dame, adding that it might be a water- or stain-resistant feature of the underwear.

“It assumes you have a lifetime of drinking water,” says Graham Peaslee, professor of physics at the University of Notre Dame, who is also active in PFAS research and whose lab conducts regular tests of products for the substances.

Verywell Health

While Thinx advertised its products were free of harmful chemicals, Sierra reporter Jessian Choy was able to prove otherwise back in 2020 with the help of Graham Peaslee, PhD, a physics professor at the University of Notre Dame.

Frederick News Post

Two nationally renowned scientists are testifying and available for interviews before or after the hearing: Dr. Graham Peaslee, a nuclear chemist and a professor at Notre Dame who has been working on PFAS since 2014 and is now considered one of the world’s top experts.

Consumer Reports

Choy decided to get the products tested herself. She sent samples of two brands to a lab at the University of Notre Dame in Indiana run by Graham Peaslee, PhD, a leading PFAS researcher.

Diane Cotter eventually sent samples of the gear to Graham Peaslee of the University of Notre Dame, who was able to test the items for PFAS content.

An article published in 2020 by Sierra magazine first brought attention to the ingredients in Thinx products. The article's author, Jessian Choy, had Thinx menstrual underwear and a similar product from another brand tested by Dr. Graham Peaslee, a physics professor at the University of Notre Dame, whose research focuses on PFAS.

Video

The smoke firefighters are up against today is more toxic than ever, according to Graham Peaslee, a Professor of Physics at the University of Notre Dame.

The presence of PFAS in Thinx products was first revealed in January 2020, when Sierra magazine published an investigation, in partnership with a researcher at the University of Notre Dame, that found these chemicals in the crotch area of Thinx underwear.

The presence of PFAS appears to have been first reported in January 2020 in the Sierra Club’s magazine, “Sierra,” with the headline, “My Menstrual Underwear Has Toxic Chemicals in It.” Reporter Jessian Choy sent her Thinx to a University of Notre Dame nuclear scientist, who found high levels of PFAS, “especially on the inside layers of the crotch.”

In 2020, reporter Jessian Choy sent several pairs of Thinx underwear to a University of Notre Dame laboratory, which found high levels of fluorine and concluded that the underwear contained PFAS.

Jessian Choy wrote in the Sierra magazine at the time that she sent the pairs to Dr. Graham Peaslee, a nuclear scientist at the University of Notre Dame.

The Cut

Back in 2020, a journalist for Sierra magazine investigated the potential risks of period underwear, sending two brands, including Thinx, to an independent scientist at the University of Notre Dame.

Popular Science

“PFAS are a class of chemicals that are characterized by extremely long environmental persistence,” says Graham Peaslee, professor of physics at the University of Notre Dame who was not involved in the study.

“This stuff is toxic at incredibly low levels and it’s persistent — it stays there for hundreds of years in the groundwater, thousands of years,” said Graham Peaslee, a Notre Dame professor and researcher who’s tested many products for PFAS in his lab. 

In a study published in Environmental Science and Technology, scientists at the University of Notre Dame, Indiana University, the University of Toronto and the Green Science Policy Institute analyzed a variety of children's textiles. 

“What was surprising about this group of samples was the high detection frequency of PFAS in the garments required for children to wear,” said study co-author Graham Peaslee, a professor of physics at the University of Notre Dame.

“What was surprising about this group of samples was the high detection frequency of PFAS in the garments required for children to wear,” study co-author Graham Peaslee, a professor of physics at Notre Dame, said in a statement.

“It’s one of those things where you hang your head and say ‘What are they thinking?’” said co-author and University of Notre Dame researcher Graham Peaslee

Vulnerable and unaware: “What was surprising about this group of samples was the high detection frequency of PFAS in the garments required for children to wear,” study co-author Graham Peaslee, of the University of Notre Dame, said in a statement.

KSN

Video

“1.2 million firefighters are wearing this,” Dr. Graham Peaslee, a Notre Dame professor who conducted the study, said.

Indiana Environmental Reporter

University of Notre Dame researchers, like professor of chemistry and biochemistry Graham Peaslee, have found PFAS chemicals in fast food packaging, firefighter turnout gear and cosmetics.

“Industry has had a 70-year head start and we’re never going to catch up,” said Graham Peaslee, a University of Notre Dame researcher.

“We’ve seen fluoro groups in insecticides, but I would not call those PFAS,” says Graham Peaslee, a professor of physics at the University of Notre Dame. 

“I would not urge consumers to take these brand names and only go to this one or that one, as this investigation only looked at just over 100 products,” said Graham Peaslee, a professor of physics, chemistry and biochemistry at the University of Notre Dame in Indiana.

That’s because all PFAS contain organic fluorine, and there are few other sources of the compound, says Graham Peaslee, PhD, a professor of physics, chemistry and biochemistry at the University of Notre Dame in Indiana, who has studied PFAS in food packaging.

Consumer Reports

That’s because all PFAS contain organic fluorine, and there are few other sources of the compound, says Graham Peaslee, PhD, a professor of physics, chemistry, and biochemistry at the University of Notre Dame in Indiana, who has studied PFAS in food packaging. 

The Times of Northwest Indiana

Residents filled "milk jugs, their favorite aquarium tank and two-liter pop bottles" with tap water from their homes, explained Graham Peaslee, professor of chemistry and biochemistry at the University of Notre Dame.

Video

Interview with Graham Peaslee, physics. 

Verywell Health

“I'm afraid there are almost no consumer products that are entirely free of PFAS at this point,” Graham Peaslee, PhD, professor of physics at the University of Notre Dame, who is not affiliated with the report, told Verywell.

Environmental Health News

Graham Peaslee, senior author of the Notre Dame study and professor of physics at the University of Notre Dame, noted in a press release that regular lipstick wearers could ingest a few pounds of lipstick in their lifetime.

WSB-TV

Video

“We think that there’s intentional use of this that’s not being declared. We think that the consumer has the right to know what they’re buying,” said Graham Peaslee, Ph.D. a physics professor at the University of Notre Dame.

“These results are particularly concerning when you consider the risk of exposure to the consumer combined with the size and scale of a multibillion-dollar industry that provides these products to millions of consumers daily,” Graham Peaslee, a physics professor and one of the study’s lead authors, said in a statement.

InStyle

As a study published by researchers at the University of Notre Dame in mid-June found, the problem extends far beyond one palette.

Men's Health

“PFAS is insidious; it’s one of the most persistent chemicals ever made,” says Graham Peaslee, Ph.D., a professor at Notre Dame and one of the world’s leading PFAS researchers.

WVPE

Audio

ҳܱ:Graham Peaslee,Professor of Experimental Nuclear Physics, University of Notre Dame.

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution

A recent study from researchers at the University of Notre Dame sent me running back for yet another makeup check.

The study was led by scientists at the University of Notre Dame and published in the Journal of Environmental Science & Technology Letters.

Graham Peaslee, a physics professor at the University of Notre Dame, led the study that inspired legislators to act again on this issue.

Woman's World

“Lipstick wearers may inadvertently eat several pounds of lipstick in their lifetimes,” Graham Peaslee, senior study author and professor of physics at the University of Notre Dame said in apress release.

The bills follow a study conducted by The University of Notre Dame that tested US makeup products from Ulta Beauty, Sephora, Target, and Bed Bath & Beyond.

Smithsonian

University of Notre Dame researchers tested 231 frequently-used makeup products, including liquid foundation, concealer, blush, lipsticks, and mascara, reports Tom Perkins for theGuardian.

Everyday Health

“These results are particularly concerning when you consider the risk of exposure to the consumer combined with the size and scale of a multibillion-dollar industry that provides these products to millions of consumers daily,” says senior study author Graham Peaslee, PhD, a professor of physics at the University of Notre Dame in Indiana.

WVPE

A University of Notre Dame study has found many cosmetics sold in the United States may contain high levels of PFAS, a class of toxic chemicals.

Researchers at the University of Notre Dame announced this week that they found substantial evidence ofper- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS)in more than half of popular cosmetic products, even though almost none were listed on ingredient labels.

CBC

In the new study, Heather Whitehead, a graduate student in chemistry at the University of Notre Dame in Indiana, and her collaborators looked at 231 cosmetic products purchased in Canada and the U.S., including 17 Canadian products, most of which did not have PFAS listed on the label.

Technology Networks

Many cosmetics sold in the United States and Canada likely contain high levels of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), a potentially toxic class of chemicals linked to a number of serious health conditions, according to new research from the University of Notre Dame.

Many cosmetics sold in the United States and Canada likely contain high levels of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), a potentially toxic class of chemicals linked to a number of serious health conditions, according to new research from the University of Notre Dame.

Science News

“There is no known good PFAS,” says chemist and physicist Graham Peaslee of the University of Notre Dame in Indiana.

Chemical & Engineering News

The work, led by physics professor Graham Peaslee of the University of Notre Dame, involved testing more than 200 cosmetics purchased in the two countries.

Shape

After testing 231 cosmetics - including foundations, mascaras, concealers, and lip, eye, and eyebrow products - from stores such as Ulta Beauty, Sephora, and Target, theUniversity of Notre Dame researchersfound that 52 percent contained high levels of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS).

E&E News

Graham Peaslee, senior author of the study and a professor of physics at the University of Notre Dame, said in a statement that chemicals in makeup are largely unregulated in the United States and Canada, which creates challenges around conveying safety information to the public.

"Lipstick wearers may inadvertently eat several pounds of lipstick in their lifetimes," Graham Peaslee, study senior author and professor of physics at the University of Notre Dame, said in a news release.

UPI

"Lipstick wearers may inadvertently eat several pounds of lipstick in their lifetimes," study co-author Graham Peaslee said in a press release.

Researchers at the University of Notre Dame tested more than 230 commonly used cosmetics and found that 56% of foundations and eye products, 48% of lip products and 47% of mascaras contained fluorine — an indicator of PFAS, so-called “forever chemicals” that are used in nonstick frying pans, rugs and countless other consumer products.

More than half of cosmetics products sold and used in the U.S. and Canada contain cancerous chemicals, according to a new study released by the University of Notre Dame.

"We found fluorine as a surrogate for PFAS was in all sorts of cosmetics. We didn't expect almost every cosmetic to light up like it did," said study author Graham Peaslee, a professor of physics, chemistry and biochemistry at the University of Notre Dame.

IFLS

“These are products that are applied around the eyes and mouth with the potential for absorption through the skin or at the tear duct, as well as possible inhalation or ingestion,” study author Graham Peaslee, professor of physics at the University of Notre Dame, said in a statement.

“We were shocked to see how much is in some of these products,” said Graham Peaslee, a professor of physics at the University of Notre Dame and the principal investigator on the study, which was published in the journal Environmental Science and Technology Letters.

Northwest Indiana Times

Professor Graham Peaslee, of the University of Notre Dame, and his graduate students developed a method for rapidly testing water for lead, Peller said.

WHDH

“When we saw the results, I thought to myself, ‘Oh, my gosh, she’s correct.’ It was scary,” Dr.GrahamPeaslee said.

mlive

A 2020 study led by University of Notre Dame researcher Graham Peaslee found that large amounts of PFAS in firefighter gear is leaching into inner layers of their coats.

Sierra Club writer Jessian Choy sent in several pairs of her Thinx underwear and Lunapads (now called Aisle) to Graham Peaslee, a physics and chemistry researcher at the University of Notre Dame.

The levels for several compounds are what Graham Peaslee, a University of Notre Dame PFAS researcher, called “unusually high” and at quantities at which toxicologists say they start seeing links to health problems.

E&E News

"Once you have this test, all moisture barriers, and therefore all turnout gear, must contain PFAS," said Graham Peaslee, a researcher and professor of experimental nuclear physics at the University of Notre Dame.

Graham F. Peaslee, a physics and biochemistry professor at the University of Notre Dame and coauthor of the study, said the research appeared to corroborate his previous studies.

And while some forms of PFAS are being phased out, the replacements have not been proven to be safer, said Graham F. Peaslee, a professor in experimental nuclear physics, chemistry and biochemistry at Notre Dame who led the study.

She’s spent years advocating against the dangers of PFAS in gear, and helped bring about a study by Notre Dame physicist Graham Peaslee that exposed high levels of PFAS in turnout gear.

Law & Crime

“There’s 1.2 million firefighters out there and nobody is telling them about this stuff,” University of Notre Dame professorGraham Peasleesaid in an interview this week on the Law&Crime Network’sBrian Ross Investigates.

We also spoke with Rolf Halden, director of the Biodesign Center for Environmental Health Engineering at Arizona State University, and with University of Notre Dame nuclear physicist Graham Peaslee (whose lab tested period underwear sent in by a columnist for the Sierra Club magazine) about chemicals found in treated garments, including some period underwear.