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Microplastics found in live human lung tissue
- cwkoss 5y agoWhat are the most common sources of microplastics that are retained in the human body? (Excreted microplastics concern me less) I would expect it is mostly synthetic fiber from clothing, followed by processed food, but seems like we probably don't have that data yet.
- Havoc 5y agoThought we’d already concluded its bloody everywhere
- FourHand451 5y agoI think that's probably true, but I do think it's useful to continue testing that conclusion. For example, if we looked somewhere and didn't find microplastics, we could then start trying to figure out why.
- bantunes 5y agoWe make fun of the Romans for eating out of lead plates and slowly going crazy, and yet here we are surrounded by a substance that might cause cognitive impairment as well https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7068600/ https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7068600/
- hans1729 5y agoThat's an interesting paper, thanks for sharing.
- StreamBright 5y agoVery civilisation has its own poison. Romans were eating from lead plates, we used to use lead in car fuel that made us dumb (https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2022/03/220307162011.htm https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2022/03/220307162011.h...) and now this. If humanity survives we are going to be those crazy dumb people who used plastic.
- e2le 5y ago> lead in car fuel that made us dumb It wasn't just car fuel, we would also cover the walls of our homes with lead paint. A practice that still continues in some countries. > As of 31 May 2020, 75 countries have confirmed they have legally binding controls to limit the production, import and sale of lead paints, which is 39% of all countries. In many countries, using lead paint in homes and schools is not prohibited, creating a significant risk of children’s exposure to lead. https://www.who.int/news/item/31-05-2020-global-progress-toward-eliminating-lead-paint https://www.who.int/news/item/31-05-2020-global-progress-tow... One has to wonder whether the individuals who insist on selling lead paint have any morality or sense of ethics. We've known about the harmful effects of lead additives in paint since at least 1786 (efforts to ban lead paint began around 1921) before it's ban in 1976 (US). The unimaginable number of people who have likely being afflicted by health issues (learning disabilities, poor health, shortened lifespan) through no fault of their own, knowingly by those who manufacture and sell the products creating such debilitating issues, it's difficult to imagine there being any possible forgiveness for such actions.
- adriand 5y ago> One has to wonder whether the individuals who insist on selling lead paint have any morality or sense of ethics. We've known about the harmful effects of lead additives in paint since at least 1786…it's difficult to imagine there being any possible forgiveness for such actions. The list of companies doing exactly this is very, very long. You can still buy packets of deadly carcinogens at the corner store. We’re still belching vast amounts of carbon into the atmosphere. We’re manufacturing all sorts of molecules that have either proven or suspected harmful effects and distributing them liberally across the globe…it’s a pervasive facet of our capitalist system.
- iratewizard 5y agoIf only we had hundreds of millions starving to death to prevent the horrors of crony capitalism.
- mhitza 5y ago
- WithinReason 5y agoIs there any research on proven negative effects? This paper is only about "potential" negative effects. From the conclusion: Following the intake of microplastics into the human body, their fate and effects are still controversial and not well known. [...] Not enough information is available to fully understand the implications of microplastics for human health;
- EGreg 5y agoAs it accumulates more and more — probably ! Like acidification of the oceans is alright until it’s not
- giantg2 5y ago"effects are still controversial and not well known" That's probably what the Romans were saying back then. Or when uranium plates were used. Or when PFOAs were/are used in good contact.
- parineum 5y ago> That's probably what the Romans were saying back then You can use that argument to support the implication that everything might be dangerous.
- giantg2 5y agoTechnically everything does contain some level of danger. We just say that something isn't dangerous when it falls below some level (subjective or objective).
- itslennysfault 5y agoI mean.... not just the Romans. We used Lead too. In pipes, in paint, in gasoline. Everyone was literally breathing it daily in all major cities until the mid 80s.
- likpok 5y agoThe Romans knew about and documented the risks of asbestos, so don't be so sure. They also knew about some of the risks of lead. Vitruvius (during Augustus) wrote that water through clay pipes is better and purer, and others comment about how the care you need to take when preparing food in leaden vessels. e.g. https://penelope.uchicago.edu/~grout/encyclopaedia_romana/wine/leadpoisoning.html https://penelope.uchicago.edu/~grout/encyclopaedia_romana/wi...
- WithinReason 5y agoI'm sure you would also find small particles almost every other matter in the lungs. Do we know if plastics are worse for us than everything else?
- toiletfuneral 5y ago
- lumost 5y agoThe concern with plastics is that many of the hydrocarbons present are analogues of hormones and other bio active ingredients. Unfortunately the list of chemicals plastics degrade into is too vast to be exhaustively studied.
- RcouF1uZ4gsC 5y agoIs the ubiquity of micro plastics actually evidence that they are pretty benign? Microplastics are pretty much everywhere, but globally (apart from Covid-19) humans are living longer, healthier lives. Despite all the news, we have one of the lowest rates or crime/war/violence ever in recorded human history. We are making huge intellectual strides. I don't think we really have very good evidence that we are being harmed in any significant degree by micro plastics.
- ricardobeat 5y agoThis argument can apply to a lot of other known-to-be-dangerous substances: particulate matter from cars, VOCs, BPA… I don’t think we should stop caring about them?
- hombre_fatal 5y agoIf humans were at peak fitness, I think there would be more promise in this hypothesis. But with the explosion of health issues like obesity and heart failure, confounded by everything from diet to endocrine disruption, it's hard to conclude that we should be leaving stones unturned. Also, longevity is only one metric. End-to-end quality of life seems to be more revealing to me about the state of our health, not just how long medicine can prop us up despite our issues. For example, why are 26% of men under 40 suffering from erectile disfunction? Why are more people on medications for mental health? etc. To what extent does any part of the system, including microplastics, impact these issues?
- koksik202 5y agothis website has so many cancer ads hard to trust it...
- photochemsyn 5y agoHere's a nice detailed research paper on the problems with microplastics: > "Today, it is an issue of increasing scientific concern because these microparticles due to their small size are easily accessible to a wide range of aquatic organisms and ultimately transferred along food web. The chronic biological effects in marine organisms results due to accumulation of microplastics in their cells and tissues. The potential hazardous effects on humans by alternate ingestion of microparticles can cause alteration in chromosomes which lead to infertility, obesity, and cancer. (2018)" You can get it at sci-hub_se just enter this title in the search box: "Microplastic pollution, a threat to marine ecosystem and human health: a short review" For a broader discussion on the continuing issue of environmental toxins accumulating in human beings, more pop-sci: https://www.nationalgeographic.com/science/article/chemicals-within-us https://www.nationalgeographic.com/science/article/chemicals... > "Yet even though many health statistics have been improving over the past few decades, a few illnesses are rising mysteriously. From the early 1980s through the late 1990s, autism increased tenfold; from the early 1970s through the mid-1990s, one type of leukemia was up 62 percent, male birth defects doubled, and childhood brain cancer was up 40 percent. Some experts suspect a link to the man-made chemicals that pervade our food, water, and air. There's little firm evidence. But over the years, one chemical after another that was thought to be harmless turned out otherwise once the facts were in." Note however that US academic institutions basically cut all research into these subjects due to political and industrial pressure. It started with Republican attacks on USGS funding for environmental pollution research in the early 1990s, and continued with NIH cutting funding for environmental carcinogen research in favor of inheritied genetic explanations for cancer. Hence, 'little firm evidence'.
- kossTKR 5y agoThank you for posting this. Those numbers scary?! Does anyone know if these have kept increasing? I wonder if some of the gender and queer issues in kids these days are actually because of this issue, same with other pathologies that sometimes require medication like ADHD/Autism. I'm saying that only from a place of love - as i've always always felt "wrong" in some aspects myself, and have always wondered if increased diagnosis is because of natural biological types getting recognised, because of industry pressure to sell more medication, or because of pollution or lifestyle. Very different scenarios.
- slowhand09 5y agoSerious? Maybe. Or not. I have titanium, steel, plastic, amalgum(sp), ceramic, graphite, and possibly glass inside my body. Pretty sure I got some asbestos, synthetic fibers, cotton and wool fibers, etc from various jobs. Plus plenty of smoke, washed with carcingenic solvents, inhaled quantities of dust... And I run with scissors
- yellow_lead 5y agoWhat's the relevance?
- Flankk 5y agoWow, you're so cool. I bet you drink alcohol with sunglasses on.
- KSPAtlas 5y agoNext you're gonna tell me you drink straight lead
- Biologist123 5y agoI’ve heard rumors of a leading investor putting together a fund specifically to short companies which he expects to go bust defending toxicity lawsuits. The key issue - I understand - is toxicity caused by interactions of chemicals approved before interaction. The further argument is that mass sterility will have huge economic implications.
- ClumsyPilot 5y ago'mass sterility will have huge economic implications' Yes, extinction of mankind might be. Bad for business, but not everyone agrees
- libraryatnight 5y agoShort-term greed + "someone will figure it out"
- thatguy0900 5y agoIt'll be really good for any company able to clone and grow human embryos. Probably anybody able to make sexbots too once you can't have a real baby anymore anyway
- trophycase 5y agoThis reality is coming sooner than people think IMO
- BobbyJo 5y agoI wonder how much of the decline in the birthrate is a by-product of fewer unplanned pregnancies directly cause by decreasing fertility. When you're trying to have a baby, and it takes 10 times to get there, it's not that big of an issue. When one mistake ends in pregnancy vs. ten mistakes, it can make a considerable difference. Just a thought.
- x3iv130f 5y agoMy 10 cent hypothesis would be social detachment leads to falling birthrates. It is well known that people don't have the same strong community bonds to those in the same physical space that they used to. In an environmemt like this sex becomes rarer and riskier as partners are more unknown. Giving birth and raising children also feels riskier as individuals don't have a community to rely on and absorb the added burden of child rearing.
- dang 5y agoRelated: Microplastics detected in human blood in new study - https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=30852273 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=30852273 - March 2022 (129 comments) Scientists find microplastics in blood for first time - https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=30810626 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=30810626 - March 2022 (119 comments) Babies are full of microplastics, new research shows - https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=28726832 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=28726832 - Oct 2021 (61 comments) Microplastics found in the placentas of human fetuses - https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=25505108 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=25505108 - Dec 2020 (126 comments)
- t0bia_s 5y agoIs that surprising after two years of trusting in science that told us to breath through masks? Even environmental activists suddenly disappeared and was silence during covid. So much plastic waste from masks, vaccines, tests, bags for lunches from closed restaurants, etc... And suddenly there are microplasts everywhere.
- titzer 5y agoYou're being downvoted, but you're not wrong. Microscopic particles of whatever material masks are made of absolutely do flake off and end up in your lungs. Is that why the planet is full of microplastic pollution? Not by a long shot. That'd mostly be due to snacks, water bottles, fishing nets, toothbrushes, flip flops, packaging of all kinds, beauty products, toothpaste...oy, the list is endless.
- t0bia_s 5y agoSure, but the waste and plastic production significantly increased during covid. It was around 129 billion disposable masks used every month around the world, according to the American Chemical Society. I'm not sure if that number is lowering or not with totalitarian Chinese policy. - https://www.dailysabah.com/life/environment/disposable-masks-the-dark-side-of-covid-19-pandemic https://www.dailysabah.com/life/environment/disposable-masks...
- kevingadd 5y agoIt's frustrating that N95/KN95 reuse wasn't a more common thing. There are ways to prep them for reuse (iirc there is a way using a conventional oven if you configure it just right) but I never saw much encouragement to do it, and I'm not about to try and DIY it without lots of confirmation that I'm doing it right.
- t0bia_s 5y agoReuse is not profitable for companies that make masks. There were even times that our gonverment told us to wear two masks simultaneously. Of course for our safety.
- titzer 5y agoFor the past few years, pretty much everywhere I've traveled, either vacationing or living, I've picked up garbage. Three oceans, four continents, I can only offer my anecdotal experience of 500 bags or so, but holy good god damn. Our oceans are absolutely riddled with plastic pollution, to the tune of 8 million tons added annually. That's two pounds of plastic per person added to the oceans every year. It's too late to avoid the consequences. The planet is riddled with this junk. It's already been sucked up into Earth's massive recycling systems. Earth is just full-on blasting our ground-up waste right back at us and funneling it into our lungs and stomachs. Whatever the effect of microplastics is on human health, we can't escape the consequences now. Pretty much all you can do is hope it ain't too bad. And argue about it. Because it's here, it's getting worse, and it's going to be with us for a very long time.
- 88840-8855 5y agoAnd we have done this in less than 100 years. I find this incredible and fascinating how much impact we had in such a short time. And to add one more thought. I still believe that we are too many people. Overpopulation has been proven not to be an existential that as we won't run out of resources, but i can imagine that those 8 billion of us are creating way too much trash that is impossible to handle. By the way. Just 15 years ago i learned in school that we are 6 billion. Today we are 8 billion already.
- titzer 5y agoIf you watch a movie shot around a coastal ocean area before, oh, about 1990, it's likely that there was little to no ocean plastic there. Before 1960, and it was basically guaranteed, and before 1930 or so, plastic did not exist. Today, beaches are so bad that most places that don't have regular cleanup will accumulate visible amounts of plastic debris. Just think, every coastline in the world, literally tens of thousands of miles, are now washing up this floating garbage we produce. It's inescapable now. Pretty much every coastline in the world, you can find something, unless someone is actively cleaning it up, with a finetooth comb. Of course, it's much worse depending on the currents and how often cleanup might happen there. But damnit, after thousands of hours out there, I am cursed with the eyes of a hawk, I'll find a bottlecap, a ring, a bottle, some plastic bits, something. Anything blue or white or red is almost certainly plastic. It makes it bittersweet to watch movies shot at the beach anymore. Everything is tainted now. That old world is gone. Look away, I guess. Or get out your fine-toothed comb, stoop for hours, to pretend, for a few tide cycles, that there isn't a steady drip of this junk washing up.
- avodonosov 5y agoHow to stop that? High tax on plastic production?
- phito 5y agoThe cat's already out of the bag.
- drekipus 5y agoI keep thinking about this, and I really wish it was that simple. Maybe attacking it from the other angle, recycling and collection, might yield better results.. But people will always toss their junk food wrappers which blows into the creeks and etc, there's a huge need for a societal wide change and look at this stuff.
- avodonosov 5y agoOne does not exclude the other - the money from the tax can be payed for the recicled plastic. This is called "deposit return system".
- 1270018080 5y agoIt would have to be a full stop.
- goldorak 5y agoTax is never the answer, free market will solve it magically ... in a magical way. Do not interfere with forces beyond our comprehension.
- lil_dispaches 5y agoMy feeling is that the cosmetics industry has a lot to do with micro-plastics. Where does the glitter go?
- ostenning 5y agoIm not sure about glitter but I remember there was a big uproar about face cleansers that contained beads of plastic to exfoliate skin. In my opinion whoever invented and pushed these products need to be severely punished and publicly shamed The people responsible need to be held to account
- red_trumpet 5y agoNot to dismiss your point, but iirc the main contributor to microplastics is car tires[1]. Number two are artificial lawns. [1] https://edition.cnn.com/2019/10/04/us/microplastic-pollution-car-tire-trnd/index.html https://edition.cnn.com/2019/10/04/us/microplastic-pollution...
- xyst 5y agoBy 2050, humans will consist mostly of micro plastic vs organic material
- dataflow 5y agoSomething I still can't wrap my head around: are microplastics like these big/visible? The definition of microplastic is plastic < 5mm in length, but how big are the ones people talk about in articles like these? Is the implication that they're floating in the air and we just don't see them because they're too small? Or are they actually large enough to be visible but we somehow still get them into our bodies somehow?
- adrianwaj 5y agoTake a glass of water and shine a light through it in a dark room. Look into it and you should see tiny white filaments that look like tiny hairs floating around. I think that's what they mean. If that doesn't work, leave it for a few hours and check the top surface or bottom of the glass. You can also try with urine. Also, if you leave it for a few days, these filaments may grow... that is beyond microplastics and moving into synthetic biology.
- ostenning 5y ago> Also, if you leave it for a few days, these filaments may grow... that is beyond microplastics and moving into synthetic biology. Sorry, what do you mean by this? The plastic in my urine will grow into something else?
- adrianwaj 5y agoPerhaps "self-assemble" would be a better word than "grow" and it wouldn't be limited to just urine and plastic. https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fbioe.2020.00127/full https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fbioe.2020.0012... "Nanoscale Self-Assembly for Therapeutic Delivery" That's just one of many articles on the topic.
- red_trumpet 5y ago> If that doesn't work, leave it for a few hours and check the top surface or bottom of the glass Did you ever hear about dust[1]? I think that phenomenon is way older than microplastics. Though I don't know if common dust contains microplastics... [1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dust https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dust
- sangnoir 5y agoI'd hate it if plastics end up being "the great filter" for humanity. It's mind boggling how our reach consistently exceeds our grasp.
- moffkalast 5y agoWell despite being everywhere they at least seem to be mostly inert and don't really cause much issues as far as I'm aware? Our ancient ancestors were filled to the brim with parasites and still managed to do mostly fine.
- Auracle 5y agoSperm counts have been dropping for decades with no end in sight.
- moffkalast 5y agoThat's pretty fantastic news to limit our endless growth and destruction tbh.
- sangnoir 5y ago> Well despite being everywhere they at least seem to be mostly inert and don't really cause much issues as far as I'm aware? A good bunch of them are known carcinogens (vinyl chloride), but generally, I'm on the same page as you: I'm not aware of any effects; no one does, and that's a problem - it's a species-wide natural experiment that has also extended to our food supply. If it turns out to be deleterious, we'd be fucked.
- Engineering-MD 5y agoEven if they are toxic and limit our lifespan, given we have adults raised in plastic rich environment for decades it’s not likely to end civilisation.
- stevenjgarner 5y agoWouldn't that follow if microplastics have already been found in human blood? https://phys.org/news/2022-03-scientists-microplastics-blood.html https://phys.org/news/2022-03-scientists-microplastics-blood...
- dharma1 5y agoThe rate at which microplastics saturation in the environment (and consequently our bodies) keeps increasing without any sign of slowing down is the worrying bit
- dharma1 5y agoThe rate at which microplastics accumulation in the environment (and consequently in our bodies) keeps increasing without any sign of slowing down is the worrying bit
- syspec 5y agoThe fact that it actually shows no signs of slowing down, is the most worrying part. People really just dont care. There's a lot of "someone will figure it out"
- DoneWithAllThat 5y agoClaims a single study.
- quattrofan 5y ago
- sumosudo 5y agoWhere on Earth could all that plastic be coming from? One possibility could be the polypropylene surgical masks being worn all day...
- namelessone 5y agoBecause plastic waste is only an issue since the outbreak of COVID19?
- sumosudo 5y agoplastic in the lungs is not from any other vector.
- syspec 5y agoAt what point will one time use plastics be banned? Things such as bags, plastic bottles (such as water, or soda) Until they're taxed at such a high rate as to make them not viable, it will never stop. According to google: Coke sells 1.9 billion bottles per day A huge portion of that is prob aluminium, but even lets say 1/3rd are plastic bottles that is still 630M bottles per day!
- mkskm 5y agoIt's slowly happening. Several countries have started to issue bans like Canada and Australia in addition to the EU and recently China, although a lot of plastic pollution in the ocean is from fishing gear. The California Plastic Waste Reduction Regulations Initiative proposition qualified for the 2022 ballot, and SB 343 was recently passed. There's also a federal bill in the US, S.984, but that's unlikely to get past the Senate filibuster. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Plastic_pollution#Reduction_in_usage_by_country/region https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Plastic_pollution#Reduction_in...
- jokoon 5y agoJust like gas as energy for transport, plastics are difficult to replace. Their main advantage is that they can package food and greatly improve their conservation and transport. This is also true for medical supplies. A potential solution would be to use standardized glass packaging, and encourage consumers to return them and reimburse them, but it would be complex logistics, and it would be heavier to transport. It would also mean a change of shape for food packaging. Even metal is not a perfect solution, since metal also has a plastic layer inside. To be honest, even the lid of glass bottles has a layer of plastic, too.