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Microplastics are Everywhere, But Their Health Effects on Humans are Still Unclear

The health effects of microplastics remain unclear, but we do know that they're pervasive in both the environment and our bodies.

 adapted from discovermagazine.com, January 11, 2020

Microplastics make their way into our bodies whether we like it or not. What can we do about it?

Plastic pollution is getting under our skin. Literally. As plastics have become ubiquitous in modern society, so too has plastic pollution, including that of tiny plastic particles. These microplastics have been detected in the air, water and even in some foods, making their presence in our bodies essentially inevitable.
“We definitely know we’re exposed, there’s no doubt,” says Chelsea Rochman, an ecologist at the University of Toronto in Canada, who studies human-made pollutants in fresh and saltwater environments. “We drink it, we breathe it, we eat it.”
How pervasive is that plastic exposure, and is it bad for your health? Scientists don’t yet know, but they have some working theories. Here’s what we know so far about these tiny, prevalent plastic particles.

Micro Plastics, Macro Problems

Once it enters the environment, the plastic we throw away breaks down in the sun, waves and wind into much smaller pieces.

“Microplastics are now considered an emerging food safety concern, but we really don’t have all the answers yet,” says Dave Love, a microbiologist at Johns Hopkins University who studies aquaculture, fisheries and related environmental, health and social issues.

Health Effects Unclear

One of the reasons scientists are concerned about microplastic exposure is all the chemicals that hitch a ride in the polymer. Plastic itself is an inert substance, but chemicals are often added to it for color, flexibility, rigidity, heat resistance, UV resistance and more, Rochman says. Plastic in the ocean or bodies of water also attracts pollutants like heavy metals and organic contaminants, such as organochlorine pesticides, which are attracted to plastic’s water-repellent surface. Many of these chemicals and contaminants have potential health effects.
 However it depends on the size, shape, type of plastic....
It’s unclear if exposure to these particles and associated chemicals is actually dangerous to humans at such low, gradual doses, Love says.

What to Do?

If you’re worried about microplastic exposure — 100,000 particles does sound like a lot — you aren’t alone. But scientists don’t yet have actionable advice. “At the end of the day, there’s not a clear consensus yet on what the advice should be for consumers,” Love says.
 Love and Cox emphasize the importance of tackling plastic pollution itself. “Given our current understanding, it seems the best potential route for people wishing to mitigate their exposure to microplastic is to reduce their production of plastics waste,” writes Cox in an email to Discover. “This is especially true in the case of single-use plastics associated with foods or beverages they are consuming.”
In other words, you have to think big in order to fight small. You can reduce your plastic use, help clean up a beach or support policies that limit plastic pollution. And keep an eye on this emerging science as it comes of age in the new decade.