Teflon flakes when you use something like a fork to scramble eggs. The best solution is to invest in pans with a ceramic finish and there are some good ones on the market. Wushstof (usually known for Knives offers them in four sizes. The shop here also offers some enameled non stick pans made in Italy.
The reason Teflon works as nonstick is that it doesn't have any attraction for water. When you wash the pan. tip it over and pour off the water- it should bead up and run of almost instantly. If there are patches that remain wet, either the coating is no longer working or you didn't get it all the way clean.
When the coating starts to come off or if they have lots of scratches, that can be dangerous. I had this happen on very early versions (70's) but not on the newer cookware. I'd toss it.
I've never had any "go bad", so I'm not sure what you mean by that. I think if I saw the Teflon coming off in spots, it would have to go. I've not seen that, but I have heard of it happening.
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