Using Oral-B Glide dental floss might be associated with higher levels of toxic PFAS chemicals in your body, according to a new peer-reviewed study of consumer behaviors potentially linked to the substances.

PFAS, or per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, are potentially harmful chemicals often used for their water and grease resistance.

The study, which aimed to explain how these chemicals enter the human body, was published Tuesday in the Journal of Exposure Science & Environmental Epidemiology and comes from the Silent Spring Institute in Newton, Massachusetts, and Public Health Institute in Berkeley, California.

Researchers found higher levels of PFHxS (perfluorohexanesulfonic acid), a PFAS, in women who flossed with Oral-B Glide compared to those who didn’t. 

“This is the first study to show that using dental floss containing PFAS is associated with a higher body burden of these toxic chemicals,” lead author Katie Boronow, a scientist at Silent Spring, said in a statement.