Each person accidentally eats as much plastic as a credit card in a week

Scientists at the Medical University of Vienna (Austria) explain that plastic particles enter the human food chain from packaging, sea salt, seafood, even drinking water.

According to research published in the journal Exposure & Health, microplastics with sizes from 0.0001 to 5 mm have the ability to change the composition of the gut microbiome.

Basically, these tiny plastic particles are wreaking havoc on your gut. Plastic-induced gastrointestinal changes have been linked to metabolic diseases such as obesity, diabetes, and chronic liver disease.

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When studying the effects of microplastics on the body, scientists from the University of Vienna also discovered how these tiny plastics enter human intestinal tissue.

Once in the gut, the plastic particles trigger an immune response and cause inflammation. There is a lot of evidence that microplastics activate factors related to cancer formation.

Drinking the recommended amount of water (1.5 to 2 liters per day) through just a plastic bottle will introduce 90,000 plastic particles into your body each year.

But drinking ordinary water does not completely solve the above problem. People who drink the same amount of water from the faucet absorb about 40,000 plastic particles a year.

The health effects of plastic may not be reversed and this is a risk that future generations must face. However, the study authors admit, plastic is difficult to replace in everyday life.

Lukas Kenner, one of the authors, provides more information, microplastics are more harmful for people with chronic diseases.

“A healthy gut is more likely to avoid health risks,” explains the expert. Local changes in the gastrointestinal tract, such as manifestations of chronic disease or stress, easily facilitate microplastics to cause harmful effects.

An Yen (According to NYPost)