16 january 2023
New scientific research reveals alarming facts about our daily water and soft drink consumption. It turns out that with every plastic PET bottle, we ingest hundreds of thousands of tiny plastic particles.
Previous studies already pointed to the presence of microplastics in disposable bottles, but the number of 240,000 particles per litre is so alarming that it raises health questions.
From bottle to body
The study, using a specialised laser technique, focused on water bottles from three US brands and found that as many as 90% of the plastic particles found were nanoplastics and only 10% were microplastics.
Nanoplastics invade our environment
Microplastics have long been part of environmental discussions: they have been found in clouds, the deepest ocean troughs and even in our food, our drinking water and in the air we breathe. Nanoplastics, which are a thousand times smaller than a human hair and can therefore penetrate cell walls and organs, add a new charge to health risks.
A glimpse into the world of nanoplastics
One of the researchers involved in the study is Phoebe Stapleton of Rutgers University New Jersey. She has long been concerned about the health risks of plastics. For example, she was a guest on Plastic Soup TV’s 2021 broadcast INHALE, EXALE plastic fibres (from 9:24)
Professor Marja Lamoree of the Free University of Amsterdam also recognises the importance of this research. Discovering such a large quantity of nanoplastics, previously difficult to trace due to technological limitations, underlines the scale of the problem.
Human health implications
Although the health risks of these plastics for humans still require further research, studies of young animals indicate that negative effects are measurable in their hormone levels and consequent disruption of the immune system. The smaller the particle, the more likely it is to be absorbed by the body, with consequences.
Besides the direct impact, these tiny plastic particles can also act as carriers for harmful substances, such as viruses and bacteria. This could potentially cause diseases.
More research needed
In 2019, the World Health Organisation (WHO) recognised the need for more research into the health implications of our plastic consumption. The Netherlands plays a crucial role in promoting this research, with growing interest within the scientific and medical community.
In doing so, the Plastic Soup Foundation advocates drastically reducing our daily plastic consumption, starting with eliminating single-use plastics. The predicted doubling of our plastic use in the next 20 years is definitely not the course to take. The results of yet another study showing the substantial exposure to (nano)plastics confirms that we need to switch to alternatives, including those for the plastic PET bottle, as soon as possible.
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