A study conducted by scientists of the UNIVERSITY OF NEW MEXICO HEALTH SCIENCES And published in the magazine NATURAL MEDICINE It made it possible to analyze with new methodologies the distribution of micro and nano particles in samples of liver fabric, kidney and brain
Microplastics (MP) and the dangers for man and the environment
In the fabrics extracted from human bodies subjected to autopsy, in two different time periods, the presence of plastics was evident. Microparticles (microplastics) were found in the liver, in the kidneys and in greater quantities in gray matter. In total, fifty -two brain samples have been analyzed.
A discovery that leaves perplexed because, compared to past years, the quantity of these substances in the cerebral body has increased by 50%, equal to the equivalent of a whole plastic teaspoon. The particles, mainly of propylene, measured between 5.5 and 26.4 micrometers. (A micrometer is equivalent to 1 thousandth of a millimeter).
The study also showed that the brains of individuals with dementia had a greater concentration of microplastics than others. Although, to establish with certainty, the causal relationship will need further research between neurological and microplastic health.
“The concentrations we found in the brain fabric of normal individuals, which had an average age of about 45 or 50 years, were 4,800 micrograms per gram of matter, that is to say 0.48% by weight – said Matthew Campen, main co -author of the study and full professor of pharmaceutical sciences at the University of New Mexico -. Compared to the 2016 autopsies samples, it is 50% more, which could mean that our brain is now made up of 99.5% by celebratory fabric and the rest is plastic “.
Another proof that the quantity of microplastics is increasing further
In 2019 Mattew Campen, toxicologist, went with his 12 -year -old son in the mountains of San Juan to work on a school project regarding microplastics. They compared several water samples collected in a glass jar in different seats along the river. After the analysis they found microplastic in the water samples but, with amazement and dismay of the father, also in those taken from the apparently uncontaminated San Juan forest.
What are microplastics?
The term microplasty was coined in 2004 in the document “Lost at Sea: Where Is all the Plastic?”from the marine biologist Richard Thompson. The researcher discovered together with other colleagues small fragments of common plastic along the coast of the United Kingdom.
Subsequently, he compared the champions of Modern Plankton with those of the 60s and found that the amount of microplastics since then had increased further. Microplastics are tiny particles that we rail, ingest and can permeate in our body also through the skin. They were found in the blood, in breast milk, in sperm, in the ovarian follicles. Unfortunately, these particles invaded and contaminated seas, oceans, waterways, soil and even the air we breathe.
But how?
Plastic is a material that man uses for various uses: construction, toys, agriculture, cars, packaging, fabrics and, depending on the use, is produced in different sizes (frames, spheres, fibers). In addition, microplastics intentionally reproduce in small dimensions to be used in cosmetics, paints, abrasive pasta and fertilizers.
Then there are secondary microplastics that derive from the wear and deterioration of materials such as tires or synthetic fabrics. These constitute the greater quantity of microparticles contained in the environment both for fragmentation and for the incorrect disposal.
The microplastics contained in the waters derive from substances used in consumer products such as polymers that contain additives to change the color of the tissues or improve their resistance to heat, aging or make them fireproofs. The oceans have become the main accumulation of plastic waste and, according to data, represent 80% of the total waste materials.
Many of these plastic materials float in the ocean and are continually exposed to the wind, sunlight and waves and this causes their fragmentation into microplastics that pollute the waters because they are too small to be retained by the purification systems. Consequently, the fresh waters, sediments, soil and air also contaminate.
The first evidence of the danger of the exhibition
The first evidence of the fact that microplastics can cause damage to the organism date back to the 70s when a group of workers, following an exposure to synthetic fibers, developed lung problems. Subsequently, in a factory of the Rhode Island (United States) some employees who handled the Flock (a dust obtained from nylon fibers to change the consistency of the fabrics) developed a lung disease then called how “Flck worker pneumonia”.
Exposure to microplastics
We are continually exposed to microplastics not only through the environment but also through foods, fabrics and cosmetics. The document of theEuropean Food Safety Authority (EFSA) on the microplastics (MP) present in the food reports their concentration found in:
- fish, the concentration varies from 1 to 7 micrograms MP per gram of fish and is measured in the stomach and in the intestine representing the main accumulation site of the MPs;
- Gamberi, 0.75 micrograms of MP per gram;
- BIVALVI, between 0.2 and 4 MP micrograms of MP per gram.
On the basis of these data, EFSA has carried out an estimate of the human exposure to microplastics considering the consumption of a portion of 225 grams of mussels (since the mussels are consumed without the removal of the viscera) and using the highest concentration of MP detected in the molluscs. In this way, an ingestion of 900 pieces of MP has calculated.
MPs were also found in other foods:
- salt, with concentrations between 0.007 and 0.68 MP micrograms per gram;
- Beer, in which fiber, fragments and mp granules amount to 0.025, 0.033 and 0.017 micrograms per milliliter;
- honey, 0.166 micrograms per gram;
- bottle water, 94.37 MP micrograms per liter;
- tap water, 4.23 mp micrograms per liter.
Experimental data on marine organisms have highlighted that MP can be transferred to various levels. For example, fish flours are used in zootechnics to produce feed destined for poultry and pigs. This contributes to the spread of MPs also in non -marine foods.
Health effects
According to theHigher Institute of Health They can cause damage to the respiratory and digestive system because they are the first with which they come into contact. But microplastics also contain contaminating chemicals and, many of these are interfering that can cause damage to the endocrine system, the reproductive sphere, to the metabolism. In addition, they can also transport, attached to their surface, microorganisms capable of causing diseases.
Experimental studies have shown that, once absorbed, the MPs accumulate in liver, kidneys and intestines with the ability to cause oxidative stress, metabolic problems, inflammatory processes, as well as damage to immune and neurological systems.
Finally, in the assessment of the negative effects of the MP, it is necessary to take into account the presence of the chemicals present in them or attached to their surface, whose release in the body represents a potential risk to health, and any pathogenic organisms.
Concern at the global level
In recent years, the widespread presence of MP has aroused concern globally. There European Commission (EC) requested theEuropean Agency for Chemicals (Echa) to evaluate the available data, in order to present a proposal to limit the use of primary MPs in consumer products, such as cosmetics, detergents and fertilizers.
When approved, the restriction will have the effect of reducing MP emissions of about 400 thousand tons over the next twenty years. Considering this objective, in Italy from January 1, 2020 the sale and marketing of rinsing cosmetics has been prohibited, such as soaps, creams, exfoliating gels and toothpastes, containing MP.