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gloriajean wrote:... When cooking with teflon (once a week if that often) the birds are in their room with the door shut and the exhaust fan going full blast on low heat.
I love my fids as I'm sure we all do. ... I belive they deserve the best. I would not endanger them.
Gloria

I have no doubt whatever that you and everyone else here love your birds. Since the issue of non-stick cookware (containing polytetrafluoroethylene, PTFE) is a life and death issue, please continue to look for confirmation that your approach is what your birds deserve. Please. Ask Robert Pavlis and Shauna Roberts on the cockatoo chat. A recent post by Dr Pavlis said this:

Thu Nov 16, 2006 5:38 pm Post subject: Non stick pans
After I wrote a scientific review about polytetrafluoroethylene, I was even more convinced that this material in cookware should not be near birds.

Highly respected vet Margaret A. Wissman, D.V.M., D.A.B.V.P., a regular columnist in BirdTalk magazine, lists toxic fumes as the third most common killer in her article The Top Ten Bird Killers on her excellent site at www.exoticpetvet.net, saying:

Non-stick cookware and other household items possessing a non-stick surface made from polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) can be toxic to birds. If overheated (temperatures over 530 degrees F), the gas released is extremely dangerous to birds and can result in death. However, even with normal usage, some fumes may also be released, so non-stick cookware, drip pans, irons, ironing board covers and heat-lamps with a PTFE coating should not be used around birds. ...
(bolding mine)

Respected Canadian toxicologist Gillian Willis says in her article Holiday Hazards: Birds are very susceptible to the toxic effects of fumes. Teflon-coated cookware should NEVER be used in homes where there are birds.

Gloria Jean and others still cooking with products containing PTFE, please keep reading and asking questions about this. It's too important to ignore just because you like your cookware.

Sincerely, Paca

parrontPlus
I understand your concern, and that you are not saying we are bad people to our birds for having this cookware in our homes. I know you are just concerned for the birds, and I know----they are only pans, as compared to the bird's life. I would like to say though that my parents had a cockatiel for 14 years----he died as a result of a seed diet(that is what the vet thought) and my parents weren't aware that this would hurt him----when they got him it was 14 years ago-----things have come a long way since then. Well, anyway, they kept him in the kitchen! They had a huge kitchen, but the birds cage was actually kept across from the stove, with only a kitchen table and chairs in between them. They used teflon coated pans----not often. The cause of death was not certain, just a guess, but no one had used any non stick pans for a long time before he died, and once he got sick, he was sick for almost two weeks, and seemed to improve for a little while. I don't think it was teflon poisoning, the vet didn't think so, and it was never mentioned, but I know it involved some respiratory problem, and he was given antibiotics, and also nebulizer treatments-----now I am starting to wonder what really killed him. Do you think he would have lasted that long from when he first got sick and show some improvement if it was from teflon? or be able to even live 14 years in a kitchen where teflon was used? I do appreciate your thoughts and advice.

If a bird gets teflon poisoned, it will be lucky to last overnight. It kills them quickly. Your bird was lucky to last 14 years while using teflon.
If teflon harms birds, it is also harming humans!!!! We are bigger so it just takes longer for the effects to hurt us!
Talk to anyone who has lost a bird from teflon poisoning, they will tell you its not worth it!!!

Woody's mom, it's impossible to know what killed your parents' tiel. Acute PTFE poisoning causes hemorrhaging and usually death within seconds of exposure. Exposure is actually sometimes hours after the cooking because the cloud of poisoned air doesn't always blow over the bird immediately. The little tiel's prolonged exposure to lower temps might well have injured his respiratory system in ways that made him vulnerable to infection. Surely an all-seed diet left him less hardy than our well-nourished birds.

Exposure over time to lower temps is an extremely hotly debated issue. Just a year ago, DuPont, who brings us Teflon, their brand name for non-stick products made with PTFE, agreed to pay $10.25 million in fines and $6.25 million for environmental projects -- the largest civil administrative penalty the agency has ever obtained under any federal environmental statute. DuPont withheld information for more than 20 years about the health effects of PFOA, a Teflon-related compound that's somewhat different from PTFE but critics consider both extremely dangerous to our health.

The environmental projects involved in the settlement include funding for a research program to evaluate the potential for biodegradation of chemicals such as PFOA. The studies should produce valuable information that will help scientists better understand the presence of PFOA and any potential risks it poses to the public. We certainly expect these studies to extend to PTFE.

DuPont still faces a federal criminal investigation of its actions concerning PFOA. In February 2005, the company agreed to pay more than $107 million to settle a class-action lawsuit brought by its employees who'd been exposed to these compounds. The EPA's draft risk assessment concluded that the chemical is "likely" to be carcinogenic to humans. Many of us who've learned about PTFE for the sake of our birds feel that Teflon (and all PTFE/PFOA products) are the asbestos of tomorrow.

You posted asking if the Calphalon cookware you bought Saturday is safe. Here's what the Calphalon site says: Calphalon One Infused Anodized ... interior and exterior surfaces of the pans are infused with an advanced release polymer. Unlike nonstick coatings that simply sit on top of the metal, this material actually penetrates below the surface, into the pores of the metal... If the polymer that makes Calphalon non-stick is infused throughout the pan and is released, why is it not as dangerous as Teflon? I'm no scientist, but I would never, ever use Calphalon in my home, so my advice to you -- from my bird-loving heart -- is that you not use it either. Why take such a risk when you have so many viable, SAFE alternatives? Who ever PLANS to burn their cookware? And what about the times you have visitors, birdsitters, using your kitchen in your absence? It's simply not worth taking such a chance.

Thanks for caring.

Paca

So, bottom line?
Glass dishes and pots are good.
What other kinds of pots and pans? Somebody know a name brand? Something that you use?
Just anything that is non-stick?
THANKS! I know this is a long post, but I want to be 100% sure.

Stainless steel, cast iron, pyrex, and Corningware are what I use.

Regarding the Calphalon, once more. It's advantage seems to be increased durability of the cooking surface because the non-stick compound isn't a surface coating, but is infused all through the pan. The killer component has always been the fumes released when heated, without regard to where the chemicals are within the pan. Calphalon might have great cooking advantages, but it seems just as deadly.

Obviously, this is an important issue being such a long topic!

I think I just answered my own questions. I checked out a website from a previous post and found this...

http://www.ewg.org/reports/toxicteflon/cookwaretips.php

Tips on Safer Cookware

Stainless Steel
Stainless steel is a terrific alternative to a non-stick cooking surface. Most chefs agree that stainless steel browns foods better than non-stick surfaces. In their 2001 review of sauté pans, Cooks Illustrated, an independent publication, chose a stainless steel pan over otherwise identical non-stick models. They also recommended stainless steel pan roasters over non-stick.

Cast Iron
Cast iron remains a great alternative to non-stick cooking surfaces. Lodge, America’s oldest family-owned cookware manufacturer, refers to their cookware as “natural non-stick.” Cast iron can be pre-heated to temperatures that will brown meat and will withstand oven temperatures well above what is considered safe for non-stick pans. Cast iron is extremely durable and can now be purchased pre-seasoned, ready-to-use.

Other Cooking Surfaces
Because Teflon coated non-stick surfaces fail to brown foods there has been a push to find other “non-stick” cookware coating that will allow the use of higher temperatures and still clean up easily. Some examples include ceramic titanium and porcelain enameled cast iron. Both of these surfaces are very durable, better at browning foods than PTFE (Teflon) non-stick coatings, and are dishwasher safe. In her New York Times piece, "In Search of a Pan That Lets Cooks Forget About Teflon," Marian Burros recommends Le Creuset enameled cast iron pans with a matte black interior. Anodized aluminum is another alternative, but some people question its safety, citing evidence in some studies linking aluminum exposures to Alzheimers.

Wow, so much info here, thanks! I will definitely be checking out the other alternatives-------I can always give my new calphalon pans to someone in my family who doesn't have birds. Oh, and don't worry, no one is ever in my house while we are not here, there is no danger of anything like that. As far as pet sitters go, I took my bird to a friends house to stay while we were away on vacation.

mytielwoody wrote:... As far as pet sitters go, I took my bird to a friends house to stay while we were away on vacation.

Have you checked out her cookware? LOL

You know, that is so true though. We are going to my in-laws for Thanksgiving and bringing Casper. I do have to check and see what kind of cookware she uses. I am sure she uses stainless steel, but you do have to consider that, huh?

Diego's Mom, Lisa wrote:.. you do have to consider that, huh?

Why would toxic fumes be any less deadly at grandma's?

I left my bird at the home of a single man who does not cook much, and also I informed him of all the no-no's when comes to having a bird in the house. He also has had birds in the past, and has no cats or dogs. I thought it was the ideal place to leave him. My neighbor across the street offered to take him, but she has a dog and had just gotten new carpeting. My bird did really well too with us being away, and being at a new place, he was a little nervous and jumpy when we first got there, but even the car ride there, he just never seemed too phased by any of it. What a good bird!

This is the new pan I am going to try----ceramic enameled cast iron. http://shop.sportsmansguide.com/zoom/zo ... did=305616
Expensive, but no more than calphalon, and definitely worth it because it's "bird safe"

Mytielwoody,

I had to go back and look at your first post to remember what this thread was all about, but anyhow, I take it you are looking for something that is "non-stick" ? Might I suggest you hit on your local flea market, and perhaps find someone selling used cast iron cookware. The best made and least "sticky" is cast iron made by Wagner. There are other mfg's., but Wagner (the old stuff) was made in Australia, and is first rate. They are much lighter than the Lodge stuff you can buy anywhere nowdays. Once a pan is seasoned, it will not stick any more than other types, bar Teflon. If you do cook something that strips the seasoning out of the pan, you just re-season it in the oven. Even with all the stainless steel cookware we have, I still prefer the cast iron for just about everything, and it is essential to make good cornbread! Just think too.. you get the added benefit of a little iron to your body It is perfectly safe on the ceramic cooktops. If you go that route tho, make darn sure the bottom is completely flat -- even a new one, or you'll have nightmares about the pan whirling off the stovetop.

Cheers!

Haha! ok, thanks for the info