\n<\/p>\n
M<\/span>icroplastics have been found almost everywhere: in blood, placentas, lungs \u2013 even the human brain. One study estimated our cerebral organs alone may contain 5g of the stuff, or roughly a teaspoon. If true, plastic isn\u2019t just wrapped around our food or woven into our clothes: it is lodged deep inside us.<\/p>\n Now, researchers suspect these particles may also be meddling with our gut microbes. When Dr Christian Pacher-Deutsch at the University of Graz in Austria exposed gut bacteria from five healthy volunteers to five common microplastics, the bacterial populations shifted \u2013 along with the chemicals they produced. Some of these changes mirrored patterns linked to depression and colorectal cancer.<\/p>\n \u201cWhile it\u2019s too early to make definitive health claims, the microbiome plays a central role in many aspects of wellbeing, from digestion to mental health,\u201d says Pacher-Deutsch, who presented his work at the recent United European Gastroenterology conference in Berlin. \u201cReducing microplastic exposure where possible is therefore a wise and important precaution.\u201d<\/p>\n Such discoveries raise unsettling questions: how much plastic do we each carry, does it really matter and can we do anything about it?<\/p>\n Microplastics are shed from packaging, clothes, paints, cosmetics, car tyres and other items. Some are tiny enough to slip through the linings of our lungs and guts into our blood and internal organs \u2013 even into our cells. What happens next is still largely unknown.<\/p>\n <\/span>Microplastics come in different types and shapes, which may influence their harmful effect.<\/span> Photograph: Maxshoto\/Alamy<\/p>\n \u201cDesigning a definitive experiment is hard, because we\u2019re constantly being exposed to these particles,\u201d says Dr Jaime Ross, a neuroscientist at the University of Rhode Island in the US. \u201cBut we know microplastics are in almost every tissue that has been looked at, and recent studies suggest we\u2019re accumulating far more plastic now than 20 years ago.\u201d<\/p>\n Ross first grew curious about plastics as a teenager, watching her mother\u2019s spaghetti-sauce containers corrode. \u201cMany of us assumed plastic was inert \u2013 that it wouldn\u2019t shed or react \u2013 but I realised it wasn\u2019t,\u201d she says.<\/p>\n Fast-forward several decades and she began studying what microplastics might be doing to the mammalian brain. Her first study, published in 2023, offered a hint: mice drinking water laced with microplastic particles started behaving differently.<\/p>\n Usually, if you place mice in a brightly lit box, they hug the walls defensively. But those exposed to plastics restlessly ventured into the open \u2013 a behaviour more often seen with ageing and neurological disease.<\/p>\n When the mice were dissected, plastic was found in every organ, including the brain, where a key protein linked to brain health, GFAP, was depleted \u2013 mirroring a pattern seen in depression and dementia.<\/p>\n Since then, human studies have added to the unease. Microplastics have been detected in the brains of dementia patients, and in arterial plaques from people with heart disease. Those with plastic-laden plaques were almost five times more likely to suffer a stroke, heart attack or die within three years.<\/p>\n Such findings gave me pause. Like Ross, I\u2019d long assumed plastics were harmless, thinking little of chewing ballpoint pen ends, wearing synthetic clothes and reheating leftovers in takeaway containers. So when I heard about a \u00a3144 test from Plastictox promising to reveal how many microplastics were circulating in my blood, I pricked my finger and sent off a drop.<\/p>\n We just have to understand whether there\u2019s anything about these particles that makes them disproportionately harmfulProf Stephanie Wright<\/p>\n Alan Morrison, the chief executive of Arrow Lab Solutions, the US company behind the test, said its goal was to provide people with an estimate of their microplastic exposure, allowing them to make lifestyle changes if they wished. \u201cSometimes this test is the kick in the butt that they need to get some of this [plastic] stuff out of their house and reduce their exposure,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n My test detected four microscopic particles \u2013 equivalent to about 40 per millilitre of blood. Based on their size, one probably got there through my gut while the other three were likely inhaled, the lab said. Although this places me in the lowest quarter of the 4,000-odd tests it has done so far, \u201cit still represents about 200,000 plastic particles in your bloodstream\u201d, Morrison says. \u201cBut considering the average person has over a million, you\u2019re doing comparatively well.\u201d<\/p>\n Yet, as other experts point out, no one really knows what a \u201csafe\u201d level of microplastic looks like. The research field is extremely young and consumer tests are \u201cvery premature\u201d, says Prof Stephanie Wright, a microplastics researcher at Imperial College London: \u201cYour test results suggest you\u2019ve got 40 particles per ml of blood \u2013 but we don\u2019t know if that\u2019s bad or good, what type of plastic, where they\u2019ve come from, what they\u2019re doing or where they\u2019re going.\u201d<\/p>\n Scientific studies have used a variety of methods, making comparisons between them difficult. Some techniques \u2013 including the one used to quantify microplastics in human studies of dementia and heart disease \u2013 can suffer from interference from biological tissues. Because of this, their results are far from conclusive and should \u201cbe taken with a pinch of salt\u201d, Wright says.<\/p>\n Even if it is possible to accurately quantify the particles in blood or other tissues, it is uncertain whether all microplastics pose the same level of risk.<\/p>\n \u201cPlastics are quite heterogeneous. There are different types, but they also have different shapes, which may influence their harmful effects,\u201d says Dr Vahitha Abdul Salam at Queen Mary University of London. The size of the particles also matters; the smaller they are, the more likely they are to cross biological barriers into organs or cells.<\/p>\n <\/span>The Plastictox blood test showed that Linda Geddes scored low for plastic particles \u2013 but there were still about 200,000 in her bloodstream.<\/span> Photograph: Adrian Sherratt\/The Guardian<\/p>\n There are further challenges before we know for sure if microplastics are harming us: rodent studies may not translate to humans; because they\u2019re so much smaller, the same-sized plastic particles may be taken up and processed very differently, says Salam.<\/p>\n So where does that leave us? We\u2019re continually exposed to these particles, and \u201chistorically, we know that exposure to too many particles is bad\u201d, says Wright, pointing to air pollution as an example. \u201cWe just have to understand whether there\u2019s anything about these particles that makes them disproportionately harmful.\u201d<\/p>\n Another pressing question is whether some subjects might be more vulnerable than others. A recent follow-up study by Ross suggested that mice carrying the Alzheimer\u2019s-associated APOE4 gene experienced more severe cognitive decline in response to microplastic exposure than those with less risky genes.<\/p>\n skip past newsletter promotion<\/p>\n Sign up to Detox Your Kitchen<\/span><\/p>\n A seven-week expert course to help you avoid chemicals in your food and groceries.<\/p>\n Privacy Notice: <\/strong>Newsletters may contain information about charities, online ads, and content funded by outside parties. If you do not have an account, we will create a guest account for you on theguardian.com to send you this newsletter. You can complete full registration at any time. For more information about how we use your data see our Privacy Policy. We use Google reCaptcha to protect our website and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.<\/span><\/p>\n after newsletter promotion<\/p>\n Despite these gaps, many researchers are quietly changing their own habits. \u201cMinimising exposure is probably going to have a benefit overall,\u201d says Wright.<\/p>\n If there\u2019s a silver lining, it\u2019s that although research suggests levels of microplastics in our bodies appear to have sharply risen in recent years, older people don\u2019t seem to contain more than younger ones. \u201cI found that positive, because it tells me we might be able to get them out of our bodies,\u201d says Ross. Identifying ways to expedite this natural process \u2013 if it exists \u2013 is likely to be a significant research focus in the coming years.<\/p>\n As for me, I can\u2019t unsee those 200,000-odd particles. Whether or not that figure is accurate, it\u2019s hard not to look around my plastic-coated life and wonder how I might start to unwrap it. Reheating leftovers in glass instead of plastic is a good place to start. And I\u2019ll definitely stop chewing ballpoint pens.<\/p>\n Although it is impossible to avoid microplastics entirely, scientists say there are practical ways to reduce your personal exposure.<\/p>\n Start in the kitchen. \u201cThe thing you definitely want to avoid is heat with plastic,\u201d says Ross. \u201cSo not cooking your food with plastic utensils, not putting hot beverages or food into plastic.\u201d<\/p>\n <\/span>Avoid microplastics getting into food by using a wooden rather than a plastic chopping board.<\/span> Photograph: fotostorm\/Getty Images\/iStockphoto<\/p>\n Salam says she has stopped microwaving food in plastic containers: \u201cWhen you expose plastic polymers to heat or direct sunlight, this is what transforms or degrades them into microplastics.\u201d<\/p>\n Ross suggests examining everyday rituals such as making a cup of tea or chopping onions: \u201cTeabags can release a lot of nano and microplastics. Even if the teabag is paper, they can be sealed with a plastic glue, so perhaps try loose-leaf tea. Are you cutting on a plastic board? Because this could also contaminate food.\u201d<\/p>\n Opt for glass or stainless-steel containers, utensils and coffee ware, and use wooden chopping boards instead.<\/p>\n Although tap water contains some microplastics, UK tap water is treated to remove almost all of them and studies suggest that many brands of bottled water contain far more.<\/p>\n Beyond the kitchen, Ross recommends thinking about bedding and personal care products. \u201cTry to have more natural fibres, especially for the things you\u2019re sleeping in \u2013 bed sheets, blankets and pillows, because you can inhale nano and microplastics,\u201d she says.<\/p>\n Check the labels on personal care products and cosmetics: although plastic microbeads in, for example, face washes, are now banned, some cosmetics and items such as lotions, lipsticks and eyeshadows may still contain nano or microplastics under names such as polyethylene, polypropylene, polyurethane or acrylates. Also look out for hidden plastics in menstrual products, and opt for those made from 100% cotton or silicone cups.<\/p>\n Airborne plastics are another concern. Although indoor environments generally have higher levels owing to synthetic textiles and furnishings, \u201ctyre-wear from high-traffic environments is another source of microplastics exposure\u201d, says Wright. \u201cIn the same way that you\u2019d avoid air pollution by walking down quiet streets, trying not to walk next to traffic and having your windows closed in the car. This should theoretically minimise exposure to microplastics.\u201d<\/p>\n Finally, think about your environmental footprint. Plastics tossed into landfill will slowly degrade, shedding more microplastics. \u201cIf you have any plastic items in your house, like plastic containers, repurpose them to store sewing materials and other non-food items,\u201d says Ross. \u201cIf you put them in the recycling, they may not get recycled and you\u2019re just adding to the wider problem.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Microplastics have been found almost everywhere: in blood, placentas, lungs \u2013 even the human brain. One study estimated our cerebral organs alone may contain 5g of the stuff, or roughly a teaspoon. If true, plastic isn\u2019t just wrapped around our food or woven into our clothes: it is lodged deep inside us. Now, researchers suspect<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":27536,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[55],"tags":[2249,3259,437,614,6387,16434],"class_list":{"0":"post-27535","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-social-issues","8":"tag-bodies","9":"tag-microplastics","10":"tag-minds","11":"tag-plastic","12":"tag-plastics","13":"tag-reshaping"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/naijaglobalnews.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/27535","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/naijaglobalnews.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/naijaglobalnews.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/naijaglobalnews.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/naijaglobalnews.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=27535"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/naijaglobalnews.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/27535\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/naijaglobalnews.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/27536"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/naijaglobalnews.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=27535"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/naijaglobalnews.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=27535"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/naijaglobalnews.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=27535"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}How to reduce your exposure<\/strong><\/h2>\n