A recent study found that microplastics could increase the risk of cardiovascular problems for people suffering from heart disease.
Microplastics have been found literally everywhere. All over the world and in every part of the human body. And they’re not just in humans — they’re also showing up in livestock and fish.
Fruit and vegetables are also contaminated with microplastics. They’re even being found in water and floating in the air. For something so small, they’re a big problem.
It’s still unclear exactly how these particles are absorbed and processed by the body.
Published in the prestigious New England Journal of Medicine, the study found that microplastics could double the risk of heart attack and stroke, reported Environmental Working Group.
Another study has found that microplastics can cause problems when they enter the bloodstream. The New York Post reports on the findings. Here’s the start of the story:
Drinking from plastic bottles may be poisonous to your health — and drinking straight from the tap might save your life.
A recent study published in the journal Microplastics found that drinking from plastic bottles may increase blood pressure as a result of microplastics entering the bloodstream.
As the name implies, microplastics are small particles of plastic found in the vast majority of our food and water supply.
Unwittingly ingested, these particles can penetrate cell barriers in the intestines and lungs and move to the bloodstream and other tissues in the body.
In 2018 alone, exposure to microplastics — which the Mayo Clinic has linked to heart health, hormone imbalances and even cancer — cost the healthcare system as much as $289 billion.
The new study by a team of researchers from the Department of Medicine at Danube Private University in Austria found that blood pressure decreased significantly when participants stopped consuming fluid from plastic and glass bottles and drank only tap water for a period of two weeks.