Research: Microplastics are increasingly seeping into our brains | Business

In the publication quoted Matthew Campen, Ph.D., professor of pharmacy at the University of New Mexico in Albuquerque. He said that the brains of people aged 45-50 years were studied. During the study, it was determined that the concentration of microplastics in the brain tissue was 4800 micrograms per gram or 0.5 percent. weight.

123RF.com photo/Microplastics on the beach

The data were compared with the 2016 data. It turned out that one and a half times more microplastics were found in the brain.

“This would mean that our brain today is 99.5 percent brain, and the rest is plastic,” said the professor.

It should be noted that this study only shows an increase in microplastics, but does not show how it affects the body.

“It is not clear whether in life these particles are liquid, entering and exiting the brain, or whether they accumulate in neurological tissues and promote disease. Further research is needed to understand how the particles may interact with cells and whether this has toxicological consequences,” said Phoebe Stapleton, assistant professor of pharmacology and toxicology at Rutgers University in New Jersey.

“Studies have found these plastics in the human heart, blood vessels, lungs, liver, testicles, digestive tract and placenta,” said pediatrician and biology professor Dr. Philip Landrigan, Global Society Program Director.

123RF.com photo/Microplastics

“It is important not to scare people, because science in this space is still developing, and in 2024 no one will live without plastic. I tell people, “Listen, there are plastics that you can’t escape. You won’t buy a mobile phone or a computer without plastic in it.”

But try to minimize your exposure to plastics you can avoid, such as plastic bags and bottles,” said Ph. Landrigan.

In the course of the study, researchers examined 92 people, who in 2016 and 2024 A forensic autopsy, brain, kidney and liver tissue was performed to determine the cause of death.

By penetrating individual cells and tissues in the main organs, nanoplastics can interrupt cell renewal processes and deposit endocrine-disrupting chemicals such as bisphenols, phthalates, flame retardants, and heavy metals.

Endocrine disruptors disrupt the human reproductive system and cause genital and reproductive malformations, as well as female infertility and low sperm count.