Stock photo of microplastics and nanoplastics.Photo:GettyScientists found microplastics in every single sample of placenta tissue examined in a recent studyThe type of plastic used in making bags and bottles was the most common type found in the samples studiedThe findings come on the heels of another study that links microplastics with an increased risk of heart attacks and strokesScientists found microplastics in every single human placenta they tested in a recent study — sounding the alarm about how the plastic impacts developing fetuses.“If we’re seeing effects on placentas, then all mammalian life on this planet could be impacted. That’s not good,”Dr. Matthew Campen,Regents’ Professor in the University of New Mexico Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, who led thestudy, said in a release from the university.For his research, Campen’s team examined 62 donated placentas, and found microplastics in every single sample.Polyethylene, which is used to make plastic bags and bottles, was the most common plastic, making up 54% of the microplastics, the university said.Stock photo of a newborn.GettyThe report comes on the heels of a new study, published Wednesday in theNew England Journal of Medicine, that has linked nanoplastics with an increased risk of heart attack or stroke.“Patients in whom [microplastics and nanoplastics] were detected within the atheroma [a fatty substancein the artery walls] were at higher risk for a primary end-point event than those in whom these substances were not detected,” the study said, concluding that those with plastic tissue in their heart were at a “higher risk of a composite of myocardial infarction, stroke, or death.”As theNational Library of Medicineexplains, “Microplastics (MPs) are plastic particles with a diameter less than 5 mm, while nanoplastics (NPs) range in diameter from 1 to 100 or 1000 nm [nanometer].”To put that size in perspective, there are 10 million nanometers in a centimeter.“There currently is no scientific consensus on the potential health impacts of nano- and microplastic particles. Therefore, media reports based on assumptions and conjecture do nothing more than unnecessarily scare the public,” said a spokesperson for the International Bottled Water Association, an industry association,told CNN.Stock photo of plastics washed up on the beach.GettyIn January, a group of scientists said they were goingto stop drinking bottled waterafter their research found that 1 liter contains a quarter of a million pieces of places.Last August, microplastics were discoveredin human heart tissue. And it was discovered that humans are breathing in the equivalent of a credit card-sized amount of microplastics per week, according to aJune 2023 studythat was reported inU.S. News and World Report.As Camden, who led the placenta study said in the university’s statement, “It’s only getting worse, and the trajectory is it will double every 10 to 15 years. So, even if we were to stop it today, in 2050 there will be three times as much plastic in the background as there is now. And we’re not going to stop it today.”Never miss a story — sign up forPEOPLE’s free daily newsletterto stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from juicy celebrity news to compelling human interest stories.
Stock photo of microplastics and nanoplastics.Photo:Getty
Getty
Scientists found microplastics in every single sample of placenta tissue examined in a recent studyThe type of plastic used in making bags and bottles was the most common type found in the samples studiedThe findings come on the heels of another study that links microplastics with an increased risk of heart attacks and strokesScientists found microplastics in every single human placenta they tested in a recent study — sounding the alarm about how the plastic impacts developing fetuses.“If we’re seeing effects on placentas, then all mammalian life on this planet could be impacted. That’s not good,”Dr. Matthew Campen,Regents’ Professor in the University of New Mexico Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, who led thestudy, said in a release from the university.For his research, Campen’s team examined 62 donated placentas, and found microplastics in every single sample.Polyethylene, which is used to make plastic bags and bottles, was the most common plastic, making up 54% of the microplastics, the university said.Stock photo of a newborn.GettyThe report comes on the heels of a new study, published Wednesday in theNew England Journal of Medicine, that has linked nanoplastics with an increased risk of heart attack or stroke.“Patients in whom [microplastics and nanoplastics] were detected within the atheroma [a fatty substancein the artery walls] were at higher risk for a primary end-point event than those in whom these substances were not detected,” the study said, concluding that those with plastic tissue in their heart were at a “higher risk of a composite of myocardial infarction, stroke, or death.”As theNational Library of Medicineexplains, “Microplastics (MPs) are plastic particles with a diameter less than 5 mm, while nanoplastics (NPs) range in diameter from 1 to 100 or 1000 nm [nanometer].”To put that size in perspective, there are 10 million nanometers in a centimeter.“There currently is no scientific consensus on the potential health impacts of nano- and microplastic particles. Therefore, media reports based on assumptions and conjecture do nothing more than unnecessarily scare the public,” said a spokesperson for the International Bottled Water Association, an industry association,told CNN.Stock photo of plastics washed up on the beach.GettyIn January, a group of scientists said they were goingto stop drinking bottled waterafter their research found that 1 liter contains a quarter of a million pieces of places.Last August, microplastics were discoveredin human heart tissue. And it was discovered that humans are breathing in the equivalent of a credit card-sized amount of microplastics per week, according to aJune 2023 studythat was reported inU.S. News and World Report.As Camden, who led the placenta study said in the university’s statement, “It’s only getting worse, and the trajectory is it will double every 10 to 15 years. So, even if we were to stop it today, in 2050 there will be three times as much plastic in the background as there is now. And we’re not going to stop it today.”Never miss a story — sign up forPEOPLE’s free daily newsletterto stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from juicy celebrity news to compelling human interest stories.
Scientists found microplastics in every single human placenta they tested in a recent study — sounding the alarm about how the plastic impacts developing fetuses.
“If we’re seeing effects on placentas, then all mammalian life on this planet could be impacted. That’s not good,”Dr. Matthew Campen,Regents’ Professor in the University of New Mexico Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, who led thestudy, said in a release from the university.
For his research, Campen’s team examined 62 donated placentas, and found microplastics in every single sample.
Polyethylene, which is used to make plastic bags and bottles, was the most common plastic, making up 54% of the microplastics, the university said.
Stock photo of a newborn.Getty
The report comes on the heels of a new study, published Wednesday in theNew England Journal of Medicine, that has linked nanoplastics with an increased risk of heart attack or stroke.
“Patients in whom [microplastics and nanoplastics] were detected within the atheroma [a fatty substancein the artery walls] were at higher risk for a primary end-point event than those in whom these substances were not detected,” the study said, concluding that those with plastic tissue in their heart were at a “higher risk of a composite of myocardial infarction, stroke, or death.”
As theNational Library of Medicineexplains, “Microplastics (MPs) are plastic particles with a diameter less than 5 mm, while nanoplastics (NPs) range in diameter from 1 to 100 or 1000 nm [nanometer].”
To put that size in perspective, there are 10 million nanometers in a centimeter.
“There currently is no scientific consensus on the potential health impacts of nano- and microplastic particles. Therefore, media reports based on assumptions and conjecture do nothing more than unnecessarily scare the public,” said a spokesperson for the International Bottled Water Association, an industry association,told CNN.
Stock photo of plastics washed up on the beach.Getty
In January, a group of scientists said they were goingto stop drinking bottled waterafter their research found that 1 liter contains a quarter of a million pieces of places.
Last August, microplastics were discoveredin human heart tissue. And it was discovered that humans are breathing in the equivalent of a credit card-sized amount of microplastics per week, according to aJune 2023 studythat was reported inU.S. News and World Report.
As Camden, who led the placenta study said in the university’s statement, “It’s only getting worse, and the trajectory is it will double every 10 to 15 years. So, even if we were to stop it today, in 2050 there will be three times as much plastic in the background as there is now. And we’re not going to stop it today.”
Never miss a story — sign up forPEOPLE’s free daily newsletterto stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from juicy celebrity news to compelling human interest stories.
source: people.com
