Microplastics

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What happened?

Researchers from the Ocean Conservancy and the University of Toronto analyzed more than a dozen different types of proteins including seafood, pork, chicken, beef, and tofu. They found microplastics in nearly 90% of the samples they tested and estimated that the average American adult may consume at least 11,000 pieces of microplastics each year.

Per serving, breaded shrimp had the most microplastics, followed by plant-based nuggets and chicken nuggets. Chicken breasts, pork loin chops, and tofu had the least.

Because highly processed products like breaded shrimp and chicken nuggets contained significantly more microplastic particles per gram, researchers suggested that food processing could be a source of contamination.

Why is this study important?

This study adds to mounting evidence about the prevalence of microplastics in the natural environment and in our bodies. Research has already documented microplastics in water, fruits and vegetables, salt, sugar, rice, milk, and beer.

In fact, one study found that the average adult takes in about 2,000 microplastics annually through salt alone. Human exposure to microplastics also comes from inhalation.

The World Health Organization recently released a report summarizing the body of research about the health impacts of microplastics. However, it says it’s still too early to make any real conclusions.

“While we still really don’t have any idea what the human health consequences of this are,if there are any at all, we need to take this seriously because this is a problem that’s not going away on its own, and it’s only going to get worse the more plastic we use and throw away,” George Leonard, one of the study’s authors and chief scientist at Ocean Conservancy, told The Washington Post.

People with microplastics or nanoplastics in their carotid artery tissues were twice as likely to have a heart attack, stroke or die from any cause over the next three years than people who had none, a new study found.

Microplastics have been found in historic soil samples for the first time, according to a new study, potentially upending the way archaeological remains are preserved.

Researchers found microplastics in soil deposits more than seven meters (23 feet) underground, which were deposited in the first or second century CE and excavated in the 1980s, a team led by researchers from the University of York in the United Kingdom said in a statement published Friday.