Younger Veterans Carry Higher PFAS Levels Than Civilians, Study Finds
U.S. veterans ages 20 to 39 have PFAS blood levels 13% to 24% higher than non-veterans, according to a Brown University-led peer-reviewed study reported by The Guardian.
PFAS are a family of long-lasting industrial chemicals often called forever chemicals. Levels are measured in blood serum, the liquid part of blood. This is the first study to compare PFAS blood levels in veterans with levels in civilians. Researchers analyzed 2003-2018 data from the CDC's National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES), the national biomonitoring program used to track chemical exposures in the U.S. population.
The gap is age-specific. Among adults 20-39, veterans exceeded civilian serum concentrations by 13% to 24%, depending on the specific compound measured. Younger veterans were 18% more likely than young non-veterans to exceed the blood threshold at which experts suggest seeking medical monitoring. In that age group, 58% of veterans were above the threshold set by the U.S. National Academies of Sciences, Engineering and Medicine.
That threshold is 20 nanograms per milliliter, a very small concentration in blood, according to Stars and Stripes. Approximately 36% of civilian counterparts were above 20 nanograms per milliliter, compared with approximately 58% of veterans.
Exposure centers on installations. Groundwater, surface water and soil around U.S. military bases show among the highest PFAS pollution levels in the U.S. because PFAS are used in firefighting foam deployed during training and emergencies. The military is phasing out PFAS firefighting foam after it contaminated water and the environment around more than 720 bases nationwide.
The elevation did not extend across all ages. The study did not find a similar PFAS elevation among older veterans, which co-author Christian Hoover attributed to slow excretion of the chemicals via blood or urine over months and years. Male veterans had higher PFAS blood concentrations than female veterans, according to Military Times.
The broader context here is what this means for clinicians and defense health policy. A younger cohort with decades of life ahead accounts for most of the excess exposure, while routine monitoring guidance hinges on a single concentration cutoff. That structure raises practical questions about who gets tested, how often retesting occurs as legacy compounds clear slowly, and how exposure records from service locations inform follow-up care. The phase-out addresses future releases. It does not resolve prior contamination in aquifers and soils, nor the lag between environmental remediation and change in human serum levels.
