Microplastics (MP) are tiny, granular particles of plastic. They are less than 5 millimetres in diameter, about the size of a sesame seed, or smaller.
There are various ways in which MPs are formed, some of which include: (1) when larger plastic pieces break down into smaller pieces, (2) when resin pellets are used for the manufacturing of plastic bottles and other plastic products, (3) when ‘microbeads’ are manufactured intentionally to be added as exfoliants to health and beauty products like face wash or toothpaste. Another way, and a highly alarming one at that, through which MPs are created, is when we heat our food in plastic containers in the microwave.
Bruce Lanphear, a health sciences professor at Simon Fraser University in Vancouver, shares: “If you dishwash plastics, if you heat them up in the microwave, if you’ve used them for many years, and they’re worn down, all of those will release more microplastics.”
Recent studies have also discovered MPs in table salt, teabags, in takeout food containers, and even in plastic water bottles. Recently, it has also been discovered that MPs have travelled around the globe through the air currents, and they have been found on the top of Mt Everest as well as in the Arctic ice.
All species of this Earth are invariably and involuntarily consuming MPs as a part of their diet, because MPs have penetrated into the soil that grows our food and the water bodies that sustain our life.
While human beings continue to consume plastic on a daily basis, it is yet unknown what could be the long-term effects of daily plastic consumption in humans. Research done on laboratory animals showed that MPs found inside animals led to various forms of inflammation, immunological response, hormonal disruption, alteration of lipid and energy metabolism (which can also lead to obesity), oxidative stress, immunotoxicity and other disorders. Lanphear says that if someone who’s pregnant consumes phthalates and BPA (two of the most common chemicals found in plastic), it could affect development of the embryo. He also shared that these chemicals could affect the fertility in developing males, because BPA is anti-androgenic, that is, it blocks hormones like testosterone.
Given the toxic nature of MPs, it is time to take action to eliminate plastic from our daily life. The famous English adage goes, ‘it is better to be safe than sorry’. If we all take concrete measures to eliminate plastic-made products and plastic-containing products from our environment, we can save our own health, and the health of our future generations.
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