It may be startling for some to comprehend that humans are now infiltrated with plastic.
I am not addressing those who had a cataract replacement lens or even a plastic heart valve.
Scientists have found microplastics embedded in the human placenta and the blood, heart, liver and bowels of humans.
Since 2004, Richard Thompson, who coined the term ‘microplastics’ in his landmark paper ‘Lost at Sea: Where Is All the Plastic?’, highlighted finding piles of rice-sized plastic bits above the tideline on an English beach. He raised concerns about plastics affecting turtles, birds, entering mollusks, and the food web.
Well, regrettably, plastics have found their way into our bodies and it’s not just via oral consumption, it seems we may be inhaling plastic dust.
Plastic has penetrated our lives deeply. From our toothbrushes, medical syringes, mobile phones, car parts, kitchenware, baby bottles, PVC pipes, and food packaging. Microplastics were found on the floor of the Mariana Trench to the summit of Mount Everest, it’s ubiquitous.
While Frederick Vom Saal published about the carcinogenic and disrupting hormonal effects of certain plastics like phthalates, BPA, and PCBs, we now have concerns that microplastics could be making us more vulnerable to heart disease (a publication by Raffaele Marfella on March 6, 2024), kidney disease, and Alzheimer’s disease, as well as affecting fertility.
In one recent study, microplastics were found in every single one of 62 placentas studied.
Scientist Patrice Nancy mentions, “this may harm the delicate response of differentiation between self and non-self with a series of related consequences on embryo development that need to be defined”.
Inside tissues, microplastics are considered foreign bodies and can trigger local immune responses. They can also act as carriers for other toxic chemicals, such as environmental pollutants and plastic additives.
While our country is now focusing on the unfortunate neonatal deaths caused by infectious microorganisms, we also need to be aware of the hidden danger of microplastic contamination infiltrating our infants and population.
Plastic was first manufactured using petrochemicals in 1907.
Nature does not know how to break down this synthetic material. As plastic becomes more brittle, it disintegrates in microplastic particles.
Plastic is not biodegradable, so in reality, most plastic does not ever disappear but becomes long-lasting “plastic dust”.
When items like plastic bags break down, they release toxins that contaminate the soil and water.
No one would have thought this ‘wonderful’ invention, which made modern life and business so much more convenient, could now be causing major concerns.
In 1950, the world produced two million metric tons of plastic. In 2019, that number increased to 460 million tons; this figure is increasing and so will accumulation in our bodies.
Researcher Lukas Kenner found that people could inhale up to 272 pieces of microplastic in 24 hours.
Researchers at the UK’s University of Plymouth in Scotland tested air in a typical home and concluded that, “people will take in more plastic by inhaling or ingesting tiny, invisible plastic fibres floating in the air around them— fibres shed by their clothes, carpets, and upholstery—than they will by eating mussels”.
Mucus can form around some inhaled particles, assisting in expelling them from our lungs. Immune cells surround those that remain, to isolate them. Over time, remaining particles could cause irritation that can lead to inflammation or cancer (as asbestos did), or they could remain an inert presence and do no harm.
With the increasing variety of microplastics, we have yet to see the full picture. Most food is stored and packed in plastic, and most FMCG products are packed in plastic.
Since 2008, several governments have advised against the use of polycarbonate in wet food packaging. Several countries have also banned the use of polycarbonate in baby bottles. We are also cautioned to avoid microwaving plasticware.
PCBs, the chemical coolants that were banned in the United States in 1979, are still found in the food chain.
BPA and phthalates, used to make plastics more pliable, have been found to leach out of containers and mix with their contents.
A few years ago, we had a big fanfare of making people pay for thin plastic bags and encouraging recycling of stronger bags while shopping for groceries. Regrettably, this has failed to be maintained. Even bins for gathering plastics are not oft seen.
We need reminders of the dangers.
Kudos to Planning Minister Pennelope Beckles who, on Earth Day celebrations on April 22, reminded us of this plastic menace as she addressed Earth Day celebrations at UWI, St Augustine.
Earth Day’s theme this year was Planet versus Plastics. Beckles said the Government alone cannot deal with this problem, “It is the responsibility of every citizen.”
We need to heed her call.