Myth: Safety concerns about cookware with Teflon™ nonstick coatings. Fact: Cookware with Teflon™ nonstick coatings is safe for its intended use, and in fact, can contribute to a heart-healthy, low-fat diet by letting you cook with little or no fat.
Polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE), the fluoropolymer used to create Teflon coatings, and some of the chemicals used to manufacture it, have been linked with certain types of cancer, infertility, and other negative health outcomes. 1 Some of them also persist indefinitely in the environment.
Health agencies have raised concerns about the compound PFOA, which was previously used to make Teflon. However, Teflon has been PFOA-free since 2013. Today's nonstick and Teflon cookware is completely safe for normal home cooking, as long as temperatures do not exceed 570°F (300°C).
Professional chefs typically do not use nonstick cookware because it is not as durable as other types of cookware and can scratch or chip easily. Additionally, nonstick coatings can deteriorate over time, which can affect the taste and safety of the food being cooked.
For decades, DuPont used perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA, or C8) during production of PTFE, later discontinuing its use due to legal actions over ecotoxicological and health effects of exposure to PFOA.
We advise replacing your nonstick pans whenever the coating starts to degrade or is scratched—or about every three to five years.
So, Should I Keep Using A Scratched Pan? No. While they don't necessarily present a safety concern, you still shouldn't hold onto your scratched nonstick pans. If the scratches are fresh, you may end up with flakes of the coating in your food, which we can all agree is not delicious.
Teflon® is a registered trademark of DuPont and a brand name for polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) a nonstick finish. While Calphalon cookware features polytetrafluoroethylene-based nonstick finishes, we are not associated with, nor do we use, Teflon® branded products.
ceramic is among the safest material for pans
From dishes, to glasses, bakeware and cookware, ceramic bakeware is our pick for the best cookware material for health thanks to its non-reactive nature and resistance to high temperatures and acidic foods. Plus it's so pretty!
While Teflon itself isn't deemed harmful under normal use, the controversy arises from its manufacturing process. The chemical PFOA, once used in making Teflon, has been linked to health risks. However, since 2013 in the U.S. and 2008 in Europe, cookware is supposed to be free of PFOA.
“Metal leaching decreases with sequential cooking cycles and stabilizes after the sixth cooking cycle,” after the sixth time you cook with it. Under more common day-to-day conditions, the use of stainless steel pots is considered to be safe even for most people who are acutely sensitive to those metals.
If you've decided to swear off PTFE-coated nonstick cookware, there are some good alternatives, including a number of ceramic, cast-iron, carbon steel, and stainless steel pans that perform well in our tests.
Conventional nonstick cookware is made with a PFAS called PTFE (polytetrafluoroethylene), also known as Teflon. In the past, PTFE was produced with the help of another PFAS called PFOA. But studies clearly linked PFOA to health risks, so this specific chemical was phased out in 2014.
Is HexClad cookware safe? HexClad describes its nonstick coating as a "Japanese coating infused with diamond dust." The company states that its pans are PFOA-free, though they do contain PTFE (polytetrafluoroethylene), commonly known by the brand name Teflon.
TEFAL pans are not made of TEFLON™
Historically Tefal has used TEFLON™ brand coatings for its non-stick pans. However, when Groupe SEB purchased TEFAL in 1968, it wanted to internalize the manufacturing of its own non-stick coatings to better control all stages of production.
A: Calphalon stopped manufacturing our nonstick using PFOA back in the third quarter of 2012. We have then since moved to a formula that is completely FDA approved.
In general, you want to replace nonstick pans after five years. But you need to be particularly careful with nonstick cookware produced before 2015, as it may contain PFOA. If your cookware dates back to 2015 and earlier, it's likely time to replace it even if it doesn't contain PFOAs.
Le Creuset Stainless Steel Cookware Set
As we mentioned, stainless steel is naturally non-toxic, in addition to being the material many professional chefs prefer.
Teflon cookware made before 2013 may be toxic
All that was enough for most manufacturers to halt the production of nonstick coatings using PFOA around 2002. Teflon using PFOA wasn't officially banned in the United States until 2014. Europe banned it in 2008.
The American Cancer Society also doesn't believe nonstick cookware, particularly, Teflon, is a significant health concern. Our take: Nonstick cookware is perfectly safe when used as recommended for delicate foods cooked over low to medium heat.
This staple material is certainly beginner-friendly, but that doesn't mean it isn't just as useful in professional kitchens, too. In fact, non stick cookware is utilized in some of the world's best restaurants, day in and day out.
Telfon (PTFE) is still used in most non stick cookware. A binding chemical to help teflon stick to the pan was PFOA, which hasn't really been used since 2013.
If possible, use stainless steel or cast-iron pans. These materials are safer alternatives to PFAS coatings and can be non-stick when used correctly. There are many coatings and materials marketed as healthy alternatives to non-stick, but cast-iron and stainless steel are time-tested and proven to be safe.