By Douglas Main A growing body of scientific evidence shows that microplastics are accumulating in critical human organs, including the brain, alarming findings that highlight a need for more urgent actions to rein in plastic pollution, researchers say. Different studies have detected tiny shards and specks of plastics in human lungs, placentas, reproductive organs, livers, kidneys, knee and elbow joints, blood vessels, and bone marrow. Given the research findings, “it is now imperative to declare a global emergency” to deal with plastic pollution, said Sedat Gündoğdu, who studies microplastics at Cukurova University in Turkey. Humans are exposed to microplastics – defined as fragments smaller than five millimeters in length – and the chemicals used to make plastics from widespread plastic pollution in air, water, and even food. The health hazards of microplastics within the human body are not yet well-known. Recent studies are just beginning to suggest these particles could increase the risk of various conditions such as oxidative stress, which can lead to cell damage and inflammation, as well as cardiovascular disease. Animal studies have also linked microplastics to fertility issues, various cancers, a disrupted endocrine and immune system, and impaired learning and memory. There are currently no governmental standards for plastic particles in food or water in the United States. The Environmental Protection Agency is working on crafting guidelines for measuring them, and has been giving out grants since 2018 to develop new ways to quickly detect and quantify them. Finding microplastics in more and more human organs “raises a lot of concerns,” given what we know about health effects in animals, studies of human cells in the lab, and emerging epidemiological studies, said Bethanie Carney Almroth, an ecotoxicologist at the University of Gothenburg in Sweden. “It’s scary, I’d say.”
  • AtomicTacoSauce@lemmy.worldEnglish
    81·
    3 months ago

    And guess who will deny this, call it “fake news,” and fight to give MORE power to plastic polluters? Can ya guess?

  • SendMePhotos@lemmy.world
    723·
    3 months ago

    Don’t forget everyone… It’s not the manufacturers fault, it’s YOURS for not recycling properly and not reusing your packaging that comes with every purchase!

    • ivanafterall@lemmy.worldEnglish
      10·
      3 months ago

      Maybe if you weren’t taking an extra five minutes in the shower, we wouldn’t have so much plastic in our organs!

          • nilloc@discuss.tchncs.deEnglish
            3·
            3 months ago

            Plastic clothes (polyesther) are basically inescapable now as well, and a huge source of microplastics.

            • iheartneopets@lemm.ee
              3·
              2 months ago

              It was really depressing when I found that Pendleton, literally THE wool store, is mostly dealing in poly-wool blends now. That completely defeats the purpose of the wool?? A breathable fabric that stays warm when wet for winter, but can also keep you cool in summer? Yeah, let’s just shove some plastic in there. Fucking capitalist brain-rot of these companies, man.

              EDIT: I wanted to chime back in and correct myself. Good news everyone, Pendleton’s clothes seem to be mostly all either wool or cotton again! I don’t know what was going on when I looked like a year ago, but they seem to have fixed their fuckery. I’ve never been happier to be wrong.

  • echolalia@lemmy.ml
    613·
    3 months ago

    I tried to write the most biased scaremongering paper about microplastics for a college course and I couldn’t find much directly linking human health to microplastics that was peer reviewed.

    The main paper in this article, the one claiming its human brain samples are 0.5% plastic, is preprint - not peer reviewed. So, reporting on it like this is unethical tbh.

    Truthfully, scientists have been looking for this sort of link in animals, and they can’t find earthshaking evidence of it. Most of the papers I found showed weak evidence of harm to animals. Most of the scarier papers have to do with how these plastics absorb chemical pollution in sea water, fish then eat the particles and are harmed. These papers point out they have trouble separating general harm from pollution from harm from microplastics pollution.

    Microplastics don’t seem to go up the food chain either, seems most plastics people eat are introduced through processing it. So, stop eating processed food. Stop wearing polyester while you’re at it, a lot of microplastics come from laundry.

    I’m not saying microplastics aren’t bad for human health. It’s just incredibly hard to study and it’s definitely not as bad as lead or asbestos. If it was, scientists would have found that link already.

    The worst news I ran across was that there is no human control group for this stuff. Everyone is full of microplastics. Those are the only peer reviewed human studies this article mentions - the sort that are like “Of samples from 20 different people, they were all full of plastics! We need grant money for more study”.

    I hope they get that grant money.

    • magikmw@lemm.ee
      22·
      3 months ago

      Inb4 we’re hunting uncontacted tribespeople to collect unpolluted samples, and they are also polluted.

        • Random Dent@lemmy.mlEnglish
          31·
          3 months ago

          Weird idea, but is there anyone we know of from very early in the space race who died in space and is still up there in a capsule or something like that?

          They might not be completely free of micro plastics but it might give us something to compare ourselves against at least (IE how much micro plastic is in someone from say 1962 compared to now).

  • ImWaitingForRetcons@lemm.ee
    341·
    3 months ago

    Wow, a calamity of epic proportions, who could’ve predicted it? /s

    But for real, plastic manufacturers have a lot to answer for.

    • Jax@sh.itjust.works
      22·
      3 months ago

      Yes, oil and it’s byproducts are indeed a blight on the world. At least the way we use them, anyway.

  • peopleproblems@lemmy.world
    241·
    3 months ago

    Oh come on, micro plastics are organic compounds how bad can they really be? I mean essentially they are made from dinosaurs, and dinosaurs are cool right? Plus, thing of all the cool things you can do being more flexible! Not to mention, society is far too reliant on them for you to cut our profits enough to really care about the consequences! Besides, there’s no known way to remove them from your body, so might as well enjoy it while we have it! (/s)

  • Aeri@lemmy.world
    18·
    3 months ago

    A disaster of insane proportions and the thing being done is saying it’s scary. God I am tired peeps.