Microplastics, where do they come from?

Microplastics, commonly found in food packaging and cosmetics, have been discovered in the human heart for the first time, according to a recent study.
Last year, a study suggested that people consume about 5 grams of tiny plastic particles per week, about the weight of your bank card.
The plastic particles enter the human food chain from packaging waste, and enter the body via sea salt, marine animals, cosmetics and even drinking water, scientists at the Medical University of Vienna discovered.
The changes in the gastrointestinal tract caused by the microplastic have been linked to metabolic diseases such as obesity, diabetes and chronic liver disease.

What are microplastics?

The European Union defines microplastics as solids containing polymers, between 1 nm and 5 mm in size, but excludes natural polymers and biodegradable polymers. On the other hand, an organization such as Beat the Microbead has a stricter definition, considering microplastics as small, synthetic polymer particles that are difficult to biodegrade.

The sources of microplastics

The sources of microplastics are diverse, ranging from secondary microplastics that are created by the breakdown of larger plastic objects to primary microplastics that are consciously added to products. Polymers are widely used in the cosmetics industry, with some considered microplastics and others not. This makes recognizing microplastics on the ingredient list of cosmetic products a challenge.

While commonly used polymers such as PEG compounds in cosmetics contribute less to plastic pollution in waterways because of their solubility in water, it remains important to evaluate the use of microplastics in cosmetics from a broader environmental perspective.
However, looking for alternatives to microplastics in cosmetics is not easy, as natural alternatives often come with their own drawbacks.

Influence of microplastics on humans

Awareness about microplastics and their potentially harmful effects continues to grow, and consumers are encouraged to take a critical look at the products they use and strive for more environmentally friendly alternatives. What is worrying is that microplastics were recently found in people's heart tissue. Researchers collected and analyzed the patients' heart tissue and blood samples from half of the participants. They “detected dozens to thousands of individual microplastic pieces in most tissue samples” and found plastic samples in all blood samples.

How do microplastics enter your body?

Microplastics, which are less than 5 micrometers wide, can enter the human body through the mouth, nose and other body cavities. Researchers conclude that, although little research has been done in this area, the results so far are worrying: fragments of plastic are present practically all over the world and can cause many types of negative effects.

The study estimates that one third of all plastic waste ends up in soil or fresh water. Most of this plastic breaks down into particles smaller than five micrometres, known as microplastics, and these further break down into nanoparticles (less than 0.1 micrometres in size). The problem is that these particles enter the food chain.

Microplastics in wastewater and tap water

Wastewater is an important factor in the spread of microplastics. In fact, between 80 percent and 90 percent of the plastic particles in wastewater, such as clothing fibers, remain in the sludge, says the study. Sewage sludge is often applied to fields as fertilizer, which means that several thousand tons of microplastics end up in our soils each year.Microplastics can even be found in tap water.This is definitely a good reason to reduce the use of plastic and filter the water.

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