A number of soft contact lens brands which are on sale in the US could contain potentially dangerous levels of ‘forever chemicals’ according to new research.

PFAS (per-and polyfluoroalkyl substances), a group of more than 4,700 fully synthetic compounds that are widely used in industrial and manufacturing processes and found in many consumer products.

PFAS, often referred to as ‘forever chemicals,’ are used to make fluoropolymer coatings and products that resist heat, oil, stains, grease and water, and are found in a variety of products from clothing and furniture to food packaging and non-stick cooking surfaces.

In this study, a US-based organisation, Mamavation, sent 18 different types of soft eye contact lenses from three major brands off to an Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)-certified laboratory and discovered that 100% of those products had indications of PFAS.

The study found that 18 soft eye contact lens products were found to have detections of organic fluorine, a marker for PFAS, while ranges of organic fluorine reported by the lab were from 105 to 20,700 parts per million (ppm).

Some 22% of contact lenses tested had over 18,000 parts per million (ppm) of organic fluorine, while 44% of contact lenses tested had over 4,000 parts per million (ppm) organic fluorine.

Linda Birnbaum, former director of the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences and National Toxicology Program & scholar at residence at Duke University, North Carolina University, & Yale University said: “Your eyes are one of the most sensitive parts of your body. Therefore, it’s concerning to see the presence of organic fluorine, which is likely a type of PFAS, found in all soft contact lens products tested.”

It should be noted that there is currently no link between PFAs exposure in contact lenses with eye diseases, or indeed whether these compounds can break down in the eye.

Nonetheless, the report stressed that because “the eye is one of the most sensitive areas of the human body,” there is reason to be concerned about contact lenses as a route for exposure.

Last year the EPA designated the chemicals as hazardous substances under the Superfund law. However, the EPA stopped short of an outright ban, despite warning that the compounds were more dangerous than previously thought and pose health risks even at extremely low levels.