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Ask HN: How to Avoid Microplastics/PFAS

I am very paranoid about this stuff but everywhere I read says it's ubiquitous in the environment and there's nothing I can do. Are there actionable steps to realistically reduce my inhalation/consumption of these things by at least 80% that don't involve moving to a farm?

neofrommatrix 2y ago
The only things I did was to get a reverse osmosis filter installed for drinking water and stop using any non-stick cookware.
- peutetre 2y ago
  Another easy thing to do is to avoid drinking bottled water: https://www.npr.org/2024/01/10/1223730333/bottled-water-plastic-microplastic-nanoplastic-study https://www.npr.org/2024/01/10/1223730333/bottled-water-plas...
peutetre 2y ago
Moving to a farm doesn't necessarily help: https://www.agriculturedive.com/news/these-farmers-didnt-know-their-land-was-contaminated-with-pfas-now-theyr/724696/ https://www.agriculturedive.com/news/these-farmers-didnt-kno... https://www.npr.org/2024/03/28/1241473455/pfas-forever-chemicals-could-be-contaminating-millions-of-acres-of-farmland https://www.npr.org/2024/03/28/1241473455/pfas-forever-chemi...
cowsup 2y ago
There are many small things you can do right now — avoid buying food or drink that is in plastic, avoid storing leftovers in plastic, avoid plastic cutlery and plates. Never heat up food in the aforementioned plastic. But the 80% number may be hard to reach, depending on what your current intake is. And since there’s no real way to measure what your intake is, and how low you get, it’ll be much harder. Moving to a farm won’t necessarily help. You still need to buy things to run a farm, many of which are packaged in plastic. You still need clothes. There will always be some element of risk involved.
- nextos 2y ago
  The problem is that avoiding microplastics in food is really hard. Lots of food that is not packaged in plastic is full of microplastics. These are leaking into food during processing or from the environment. Car tires are full of plastic and continuously shedding it. For example, lots of plant roots have been shown to uptake microplastics from soil. IMHO, EPA and EU environmental agencies should mandate testing microplastic levels in food. Otherwise, we are blind. Alternatively, some independent organization should come up with a microplastic level test and award badges.
pella 2y ago
"Drinking Boiled Tap Water Reduces Human Intake of Nanoplastics and Microplastics" https://pubs.acs.org/doi/10.1021/acs.estlett.4c00081 https://pubs.acs.org/doi/10.1021/acs.estlett.4c00081 "Boiling hard water (>120 mg L–1 of CaCO3) can remove at least 80% of polystyrene, polyethylene, and polypropylene NMPs size between 0.1 and 150 μm."
agnos 2y ago
Yeah, people aren't paranoid enough about this IMO. Legislation needs to catch up with research coming out about the serious health impacts. Reducing personal exposure seems possible. I mean, realistically there are only so many ways microplastics can enter the body, so it's a matter of managing your "attack surface". Of course there's no way to know what the impact really is, but what we've done in our household in the past few years: - Eating/drinking: started using glass food containers, ceramic cookware, silicon kitchen utensils. Got a good reverse osmosis water filter, stopped buying bottled water. - Skin: lots of fabrics are derived from plastics these days, so try to get 100% cotton. Do research on skin products you use every day. - Air: get a good air purifier and run it throughout the day. Even if the windows are closed, furniture can off-gas microplastics into the air. HEPA air filters for your car, pretty easy to install yourself.
- mapmap 2y ago
  What would make a good replacement for a plastic cutting board for use with meat?
  - cpach 2y ago
    I use wooden cutting boards for that, works very well.
  - agnos 2y ago
    Silicone -- easy to throw in the dishwasher, too.
    - Two4 2y ago
      Does silicone not contain plasticizers?
- jejeyyy77 2y ago
  this sounds like trying to put out a fire with a cup of water. do you go outside? cars on pavement roadways are one of the biggest sources of microplastics. do you buy prepackaged food/drinks/groceries? do you eat out?
al_borland 2y ago
Ridding your home of plastic and avoiding buying stuff that comes wrapped in it, it’s probably a good first step and within your control. It may be hard to remove 100% these days, especially with electronics. I’ve been watching Rajiv Surendra‘s YouTube channel for a while. While he has the occasional plastic item shown, it is pretty rare to see plastic in his apartment or wherever he is. Baskets are wicker, bowls are ceramic, silverware is actually silver, cutting boards are wood, textiles are cotton, wool, etc, paintbrushes are made from squirrel hair. It’s given me a lot of ideas and awareness for the different options out there and how people lived before the invention of plastic.
- throwup238 2y ago
  > paintbrushes are made from squirrel hair I too love my $60 paint brushes. They’re so soft.
lamp_book 2y ago
Avoid clothes made from synthetic fibers.
- gnz11 2y ago
  Good luck finding non-synthetic clothes for exercise or other forms of physical activity that performs as well as synthetics. Even if you do, it’s usually a blend of synthetics with natural fibers.
JLCarveth 2y ago
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC8994130/ https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC8994130/ You can try donating plasma
pasabagi 2y ago
Well, ~50%[0] of microplastics is car tyres, so you know, good luck. Support public transport, support cycle lanes, campaign for pedestrianization, etc. Maybe move to a low-car-density enviroment? Holland? [0]: https://e360.yale.edu/features/tire-pollution-toxic-chemicals https://e360.yale.edu/features/tire-pollution-toxic-chemical...
tmaly 2y ago
I always order my coffee in a mug at coffee shops, and I try to avoid shops that serve in plastic lined paper cups. When I can't, I bring my own mug.
malfist 2y ago
A couple simple things: * Minimize plastic use as much as possible in the home. * Don't reheat food in plastic containers * Use a carbon filter on your kitchen sink and fridge, carbon can remove pfas
fallinditch 2y ago
There are some good suggestions here. It's easy to feel powerless and paranoid about all the crap going on but a balanced approach that focuses on mindful living and ethical choices is a better way. By transforming anxiety into positive action we can contribute to systemic change while maintaining personal well-being.

neofrommatrix 2y ago

The only things I did was to get a reverse osmosis filter installed for drinking water and stop using any non-stick cookware.

peutetre 2y ago
Another easy thing to do is to avoid drinking bottled water: https://www.npr.org/2024/01/10/1223730333/bottled-water-plastic-microplastic-nanoplastic-study https://www.npr.org/2024/01/10/1223730333/bottled-water-plas...

peutetre 2y ago

Moving to a farm doesn't necessarily help: https://www.agriculturedive.com/news/these-farmers-didnt-know-their-land-was-contaminated-with-pfas-now-theyr/724696/ https://www.agriculturedive.com/news/these-farmers-didnt-kno... https://www.npr.org/2024/03/28/1241473455/pfas-forever-chemicals-could-be-contaminating-millions-of-acres-of-farmland https://www.npr.org/2024/03/28/1241473455/pfas-forever-chemi...

cowsup 2y ago

There are many small things you can do right now — avoid buying food or drink that is in plastic, avoid storing leftovers in plastic, avoid plastic cutlery and plates. Never heat up food in the aforementioned plastic. But the 80% number may be hard to reach, depending on what your current intake is. And since there’s no real way to measure what your intake is, and how low you get, it’ll be much harder. Moving to a farm won’t necessarily help. You still need to buy things to run a farm, many of which are packaged in plastic. You still need clothes. There will always be some element of risk involved.

nextos 2y ago
The problem is that avoiding microplastics in food is really hard. Lots of food that is not packaged in plastic is full of microplastics. These are leaking into food during processing or from the environment. Car tires are full of plastic and continuously shedding it. For example, lots of plant roots have been shown to uptake microplastics from soil. IMHO, EPA and EU environmental agencies should mandate testing microplastic levels in food. Otherwise, we are blind. Alternatively, some independent organization should come up with a microplastic level test and award badges.

pella 2y ago

"Drinking Boiled Tap Water Reduces Human Intake of Nanoplastics and Microplastics" https://pubs.acs.org/doi/10.1021/acs.estlett.4c00081 https://pubs.acs.org/doi/10.1021/acs.estlett.4c00081 "Boiling hard water (>120 mg L–1 of CaCO3) can remove at least 80% of polystyrene, polyethylene, and polypropylene NMPs size between 0.1 and 150 μm."

agnos 2y ago

Yeah, people aren't paranoid enough about this IMO. Legislation needs to catch up with research coming out about the serious health impacts. Reducing personal exposure seems possible. I mean, realistically there are only so many ways microplastics can enter the body, so it's a matter of managing your "attack surface". Of course there's no way to know what the impact really is, but what we've done in our household in the past few years: - Eating/drinking: started using glass food containers, ceramic cookware, silicon kitchen utensils. Got a good reverse osmosis water filter, stopped buying bottled water. - Skin: lots of fabrics are derived from plastics these days, so try to get 100% cotton. Do research on skin products you use every day. - Air: get a good air purifier and run it throughout the day. Even if the windows are closed, furniture can off-gas microplastics into the air. HEPA air filters for your car, pretty easy to install yourself.

mapmap 2y ago
What would make a good replacement for a plastic cutting board for use with meat?
- cpach 2y ago
  I use wooden cutting boards for that, works very well.
- agnos 2y ago
  Silicone -- easy to throw in the dishwasher, too.
  - Two4 2y ago
    Does silicone not contain plasticizers?
jejeyyy77 2y ago
this sounds like trying to put out a fire with a cup of water. do you go outside? cars on pavement roadways are one of the biggest sources of microplastics. do you buy prepackaged food/drinks/groceries? do you eat out?

al_borland 2y ago

Ridding your home of plastic and avoiding buying stuff that comes wrapped in it, it’s probably a good first step and within your control. It may be hard to remove 100% these days, especially with electronics. I’ve been watching Rajiv Surendra‘s YouTube channel for a while. While he has the occasional plastic item shown, it is pretty rare to see plastic in his apartment or wherever he is. Baskets are wicker, bowls are ceramic, silverware is actually silver, cutting boards are wood, textiles are cotton, wool, etc, paintbrushes are made from squirrel hair. It’s given me a lot of ideas and awareness for the different options out there and how people lived before the invention of plastic.

throwup238 2y ago
> paintbrushes are made from squirrel hair I too love my $60 paint brushes. They’re so soft.

lamp_book 2y ago

Avoid clothes made from synthetic fibers.

gnz11 2y ago
Good luck finding non-synthetic clothes for exercise or other forms of physical activity that performs as well as synthetics. Even if you do, it’s usually a blend of synthetics with natural fibers.

JLCarveth 2y ago

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC8994130/ https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC8994130/ You can try donating plasma

pasabagi 2y ago

Well, ~50%[0] of microplastics is car tyres, so you know, good luck. Support public transport, support cycle lanes, campaign for pedestrianization, etc. Maybe move to a low-car-density enviroment? Holland? [0]: https://e360.yale.edu/features/tire-pollution-toxic-chemicals https://e360.yale.edu/features/tire-pollution-toxic-chemical...

tmaly 2y ago

I always order my coffee in a mug at coffee shops, and I try to avoid shops that serve in plastic lined paper cups. When I can't, I bring my own mug.

malfist 2y ago

A couple simple things: * Minimize plastic use as much as possible in the home. * Don't reheat food in plastic containers * Use a carbon filter on your kitchen sink and fridge, carbon can remove pfas

fallinditch 2y ago

There are some good suggestions here. It's easy to feel powerless and paranoid about all the crap going on but a balanced approach that focuses on mindful living and ethical choices is a better way. By transforming anxiety into positive action we can contribute to systemic change while maintaining personal well-being.