Lately SciAm has been running and re-running an article on social media, focusing on plastic cooking utensils, storage etc. as sources of microplastic accumulation in humans.
I’m not disputing that plastics in food prep do contribute to microplastic bio-accumulation - my question is, are these actually dominant sources?
Comparative numbers haven’t risen to the forefront of my web searching.
If say 75% of our microplastic uptake is via water and food that was already contaminated (by landfill seepage and wind-borne urban dust) before it entered our homes, then telling consumers to replace all their plastic spatulas and storageware with wood, glass and metal … is just Big Plastic shuffling off responsibility onto consumers, just like it did with the lie of plastics recycling.
Tires.
And textiles.
If I had to guess I would say that the majority of micro plastic in humans comes from food packaging and food containers.
When it comes to convenience food (like microwave dinners) everything is packed with plastic. If you poke holes into the seal in order to microwave it, plastic particles find their way into the food, and thus into your body. Plastics are everywhere: the inner lining of a tin can, for example, is made of plastic to avoid that the beverage or the food takes on the taste of the tin can. I assume that if you turn the cap on a soda bottle in order to open it, plastic particles float around in the air nearby the opening and get into the body when you directly drink from the bottle just after you opened it. Every pit of food that is wrapped in plastic will be contaminated with micro- or nano plastic particles, either by mechanical impact (caused by opening the packing) or because chemical components.from the plastic will dissolve into the food over time (hence why bottled water has an expiration date).
Another role into the accumulation of micro plastics into the human body ist that we simply breath it in. micro- or nanoscopic plastic particles from our clothes, from car-and bycicle tires (the most severe micro-plastic pollutant by the way), shoes and things made from plastics in general that are exposed to wear and tear and also to sun light (UV light will disintegrate any sort of plastic).
There is no escape.
There is no escape.
accurate 😭
All systemic issues are marketing opportunities.
There’s a quote about Woodstock (the original in '69 or something).
They came in a movement and left a market.I think about that often.
Seems to me like everything you eat has microplastics:
- salt & sugar
- sea food
- tea bags (even the paper ones)
- rice
- bottled water
- honey (even in glass jars, bees exposed to microplastics deposit them in the honey)
- fruits and vegetables
- meat & plant-based alternatives
The plastic cooking utensil panic is specifically black plastic, that’s made form recycled plastic, that is made from non-food-safe sources.
It’s hard to identify the sources of microplastics, but utensils and containers is obviously the big source in food. But tire dust is a big atmospheric contaminant, and synthetic fabric (e.g. polyester clothing) is another.
Totally trust me bro but if you look at the tooth brush brisles…
Hmm injest that shit daily 🫡
Cutting boards
They’re a source, for sure, but they’re definitely not the largest source.
