For Father’s Day weekend, WTOP is taking a look at some of the things men need to watch out for when it comes to staying healthy. One of those is something called “forever chemicals.”

Research is finding that they have an impact on infertility in men.

“No dad can fix toxic pollution with a toolbox,” said Marc Boom, senior director of public affairs at the Environmental Protection Network.

He said they’ve recently put out a report called Terrible Toxics to bring awareness to how harmful certain pollutants are, and how they could cause infertility in men.

The EPN said in the report that about 172 million Americans have PFAS chemicals, known as “forever chemicals” in their drinking water, and nearly everyone in the U.S., including newborn babies, has PFAS in their blood from multiple sources, such as water, food, consumer products and indoor dust.

“Things like PFAS, which are also known as forever chemicals, phthalates and even some pesticides, can interfere with hormones and fertility and reproductive health,” he said.

So how do you protect yourself? He said there are some simple steps to take.

“Don’t heat up your food in plastic, don’t store it in plastic, that can leach out and can increase your exposure. If you’re concerned about PFAs, you can, you can look at your water utility, see what they’re doing about it. You can buy a certified filter,” Boom said.

Another thing is looking at what’s in your cookware. Non-stick cookware often includes PFAS in the coating. You could be cooking harmful toxins into your healthy food.

“There’s this whole class of emerging pollutants, like PFAS, forever chemicals that we are just starting to understand,” Boom said. “You might come across them in your water, in your air and the food you eat at work, or in your home, the products that you buy.”

“Father’s Day is a time when a lot of us think about the people we love and what it means to protect them.”

Find more about the connection between PFAS and infertility in men at the EPN website here.