Microplastics a Growing Concern for Health and Environment

WASHINGTON, D.C. –  A new consumer guide provides crucial tips on reducing exposure to microplastics based on recent scientific findings, which will help families protect their health from the deluge of microplastics found in bottled drinking water and cosmetics, and shed from kitchen cookware, clothing, and more. As detailed in the accompanying NRDC issue brief, Microplastic Deluge, microplastics are present in human brains and blood, in plants, fish, and wild birds, as well as soil, food, air, lakes, rivers, and oceans.

Among the top 10 tips are: Drink tap water not bottled; don’t microwave food in plastic containers; and bring your own non-plastic reusable cup. 

There is a growing and highly concerning body of scientific evidence that microplastics are toxic to human health. These microscopic particles of plastic and chemicals are in human blood, testicles, and major organs. A recent study found that a plastic spoon’s worth of microplastics can be found in the human brain. 

“Microplastics are everywhere we look, including even our brains. There is no way to entirely avoid exposure given the massive amounts of plastic added to our environment every year, but there are things we can all do to limit it,” said Renee Sharp, NRDC’s director of plastics and petrochemical advocacy. “The plastic industry’s reckless disregard for human health and the environment has catapulted us into dangerous, uncharted territory.”

There are no laws regulating microplastics in food or air, making it especially urgent that governments adopt policies that will end the use of unnecessary and avoidable plastics. The plastic industry is aggressively expanding its footprint: Annual production of plastic continues to grow exponentially and is expected to almost triple over the next four decades. 

“NRDC created the consumer guide to microplastics to help people take steps to protect their family. It shouldn’t be up to individuals to reduce the world’s burden of microplastics. But people should have science-based guidance on ways they can begin to reduce their exposure; for example by choosing tap water over bottled water, no longer heating food in plastic containers, and working to avoid the microplastics being added to personal care products” said Sharp.  

The top 10 steps you can take to reduce your (and your family’s) exposure to microplastics include:

1. Choose tap water, not bottled water. 

2. Don’t microwave plastic. 

3. Rethink your plastic kitchenware. 

4. Choose natural fibers for carpet, furnishings, and clothing. 

5. Drink tea? Avoid plastic tea bags. 

6. Bring your own non-plastic reusable cup.

7. Skip the plastic baby bottles. 

8. Rethink your nonstick pans. 

9. Keep an eye out for sneaky plastics in menstrual products. 

10. Avoid personal care products with intentionally added microplastics.

The recommendations for consumer action are based on NRDC’s new issue brief, “Microplastic Deluge,” which includes an overview of the scientific literature. Plastics are very slow to break down in the environment; they just become smaller particles of plastics as they very slowly release their chemical building blocks, including leaching other toxic chemicals like PFAS “forever chemicals,” phthalates, vinyl, and flame retardants. Some 16,000-plus chemicals are used to make different types of plastic.

“It’s only been three years since scientists first found microplastics in human blood, but we now suspect that microplastic exposure is associated with several human health concerns such as, digestive, respiratory, and reproductive issues,” said Katie Pelch, senior scientist at NRDC. “Now that we can see the enormous scope of the microplastic problem, it is urgent to reduce plastic production and use, including single-use plastics and intentionally added microplastics. This is the only way that we will reduce the amount of microplastics in the environment and our bodies.”