A worrisome new study in Nature Medicine showed that microplastics are increasingly accumulating in the brain. The average amount of microplastics found in the recent samples was about 7grams or about 1 ½ teaspoons. The brain accumulation was seven to 30 times greater than that in other organs (liver and kidney), suggesting plastic particles easily access brain tissue.

The researchers also found that the post-mortem brain samples from last year contained about 50 percent more microplastics than the samples from nearly a decade ago. People with dementia (including Alzheimer’s disease) had up to 10 times as much plastic in their brains as everyone else. Polyethylene, commonly found in plastic bags and food and drink packaging, was the most frequently identified plastic.

Here’s what you need to know about microplastics and your health:

What are microplastics?

Microplastics refer to tiny pieces of plastic — less than five millimeters or the size of a pencil eraser tip — that are shed from plastic objects. Nanoplastics are even smaller and can be a fraction of the width of a human hair. (Most of the microplastics found in the brains in the study were on the nanoscale as these tiny particles can cross the blood-brain barrier.)

Where are microplastics found?

We are a plastic planet. Microplastics are everywhere: trash, dust, fabrics, cosmetics, cleaning products, rain, seafood, produce, table salt, and more. Products such as plastic bags, water bottles, tires, and polyester or synthetic clothing shed small fragments or fibers that make their way into air, food, and water. Researchers have detected microplastics in water, including oceans, shellfish, breast milk, atmospheric air, and precipitation.

Microplastics are ubiquitous and long-lasting, often requiring centuries to break down. As a result, cells responsible for removing waste products can’t readily degrade them, so microplastics accumulate in organisms. Unfortunately, the production of plastics is increasing, and this trajectory is set to persist until 2050.

Why are microplastics harmful?

Scientists warn that they are still just scratching the surface of the possible health risks of microplastics in water, food, and air. We know that microplastic particles are ingested, inhaled, or absorbed into the skin and burrow deep into the human body. Microplastics have been identified throughout the body, such as in the liver, kidneys, placenta, breast milk, blood, lungs, testicles, and arteries leading to the heart and brain.

Another recent study in the New England Journal of Medicine found that microplastic buildup in patients undergoing surgery were 4.5 times more likely to experience a heart attack, a stroke, or death compared to those without microplastics in their plaque. Another study found that patients with inflammatory bowel disease had more microplastics in their feces than healthy subjects.

There is overwhelming scientific evidence for the toxicity of microplastics to human health. The primary concern is the ability of microplastics to cause inflammation, a key driver of many issues such as cardiovascular disease, colorectal cancer, inflammatory bowel disease, and brain disorders.

Mimimize your exposure to microplastics

Microplastics are everywhere in our environment. They enter the human body through dietary intake, inhalation, and absorption through the skin. Here are a few key steps you can take to reduce microplastic exposure through dietary intake:

  1. Avoid highly processed foods. Highly processed foods have more contact with plastic food-production equipment. The less processed, the less plastic, so always choose fresh, minimally processed whole foods.
  2. Avoid plastic packaging. Plastic packaging can generate small amounts of microplastics that may be shed into your food. Purchase food in glass bottles or cans and store it in glass containers. (Keep your food below the top of the container to avoid contact with the lids, which are often plastic.)
  3. Replace plastic cutting boards with wooden ones and avoid using plastic utensils. Choose wood, stainless steel, and silicone for kitchen tools. Use stainless steel straws instead of plastic ones.
  4. Drink beverages from glass or stainless-steel containers. Avoid plastic water bottles to reduce exposure to microplastics in water and other plastic-bottled beverages and opt for reusable water bottles.
  5. Don’t heat plastic. Plastic exposed to heat increases the release of microplastics. If you reheat the food, remove it from plastic containers first.

The takeaway: Microplastics are harmful to our health, especially our brains. We can’t directly control many of the microplastics we’re exposed to in our environment, but there are simple steps we can take to lessen exposure.

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