Tiny shards of plastic are increasingly infiltrating our brains, study says (2/2)
By Sandee LaMotte, CNN
Updated 2:50 PM EDT, Fri August 23, 2024
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In that report, the consortium determined plastics are
associated with harms to human health at every single stage of the plastic
lifecycle.
“Some microplastics are also airborne,” Landrigan said. “For example, when people are driving down the highway and their tires are abrading on the surface of the highway, a certain amount of microplastic particles are thrown into the air.
“If you live near the coast, some of the microplastic particles that are in the ocean get kicked into the air through wave action,” he said. “So ingestion is probably the dominant route, but inhalation is also an important route.”
Plastics with ties to cancer
Polyethylene was also the predominant type of polymer found in human and dog testicles, according to an August 2024 study by Campen and his team.
The production of various forms of polyethylene, such as polyethylene terephthalate (PET) plastics, are the biggest contributor to the release of the solvent 1,4-dioxane into the environment, according to industry data collected by Defend our Health, an environmental advocacy group.
The US National Toxicity Program and the International Agency for Research on Cancer considers 1,4-dioxane to be possibly carcinogenic to humans. In 2023, the EPA released a draft report saying that the solvent poses an “unreasonable risk of injury to health” for plastics workers and community residents whose drinking water has been polluted by discharges from PET plastics factories.
“The biggest question is, ‘OK, what are these particles doing to us?’ Honestly there’s a lot we still don’t know,” Landrigan said. “What we do know with real certainty is that these microplastic particles are like Trojan horses — they carry with them all the thousands of chemicals that are in plastics and some are very bad actors.”
By invading individual cells and tissues in major organs, nanoplastics can potentially interrupt cellular processes and deposit endocrine-disrupting chemicals such as bisphenols, phthalates, flame retardants, heavy metals and per- and polyfluorinated substances, or PFAS.
Endocrine disruptors interfere with the human reproductive system, leading to genital and reproductive malformations as well as female infertility and a decline in sperm count, according to the Endocrine Society.
“We have some pretty good indications that microplastics and nanoplastics cause harm, even though we are a long way from knowing the full extent of that harm,” Landrigan said. “I would say we have enough information here that we need to start taking protective action.”
Learn to use less plastic
There are many steps individuals can take to reduce their
exposure to plastics and their plastic footprint, experts say.
“It’s hard to avoid foods wrapped in plastic film but be sure to take the food out of the plastic wrapping before you cook it or put it in the microwave,” Landrigan said. “When you heat plastic, that accelerates the movement of the microplastics out of the wrapping into the food.
Invest in a zippered fabric bag and ask the dry cleaner to return your clothes in that instead of those thin sheets of plastic, suggested the Natural Resources Defense Council, an environmental advocacy group. Bring a travel mug to the local coffee store for takeout and silverware to the office to cut back on plastic cups and utensils.
“Don’t use plastic bags when you go shopping. Use a cloth bag or a paper bag or a recycle bag. Try to avoid plastic water bottles, if you can possibly do so,” Landrigan said.
A March 2024 study found 1 liter of bottled water — the equivalent of two standard-size bottled waters typically purchased by consumers — contained an average of 240,000 plastic particles from seven types of plastics. Some 90% of those were nanoplastics.
“Use a metal or glass drinking cup instead of a plastic cup. Store your food in glass containers instead of in plastic ones,” Landrigan said. “Work in your local community to ban plastic bags, as many communities around the United States have now done. There is a lot you can do.”
Translation
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在該報告中，該聯盟確定塑膠在它的生命週期的每個階段都會對人類健康造成危害。
Landrigan說: 「有些微塑膠也會透過空氣傳播」。 「例如，當人們在高速公路上行駛時，輪胎在高速公路表面磨損，有一定量的微塑膠顆粒會被拋到空氣中」。
他說:「如果你住在海岸附近，海洋中的一些微塑膠顆粒會透過波浪作用被踢到空氣中」。 「因此飲食可能是主要途徑，但呼吸也是一個重要途徑」。
塑膠與癌症有關
聚乙烯用於塑膠袋、薄膜和瓶子，是不可生物降解，是人體組織樣本中發現的主要塑膠類型。根據預印本，大腦中發現的這種物質的含量比肝臟或腎臟中的含量要多。
根據 Campen 和他的團隊 2024 年 8 月的一項研究，聚乙烯也是人類和狗睪丸中發現的主要聚合物類型。
根據環保倡導組織「捍衛我們的健康」收集的行業數據，聚乙烯，例如聚對苯二甲酸乙二醇酯 (PET) 塑料，是溶劑 1,4-二噁烷釋放到環境中的最大提供者。
美國國家毒性計劃和國際癌症研究機構認為 1,4-二噁烷可能對人類致癌。 2023年，美國環保署發布了一份報告草案，稱這種溶劑, 因PET塑膠工廠的排放物所污染, 對塑膠工人和社區居民的飲用水構成「不合理的健康傷害風險」。
Landrigan說: 「最大的問題是，『好吧，這些粒子對我們做了什麼？』老實說，我們仍然不知道很多」。 「我們真正確定的是，這些微塑料顆粒就像特洛伊木馬 - 它們攜帶著塑料中的數千種化學物質，其中一些是非常糟糕的」。
透過侵入主要器官中的單一細胞和組織，奈米塑膠可能會干擾細胞運作, 並會積聚一些會干擾內分泌的化學物質，例如雙酚、鄰苯二甲酸鹽、阻燃劑、重金屬以及全氟和多氟物質（ PFAS）。
據內分泌學會稱，內分泌干擾物會影響人類生殖系統，導致生殖器和生殖畸形以及女性不孕和精子數量下降。
Landrigan說： “我們得知一些有用的觀察, 表明微塑料和奈米塑料會造成危害，儘管我們距離了解這種危害的全部程度還有很長的路要走”; “我想說，我們這裡有足夠的信息使我們需要開始採取保護行動。”
學會少用塑料
專家表示，個人可以採取許多措施來減少塑膠接觸和塑膠足跡。
Landrigan說：「很難避免用塑膠薄膜包裹的食物，但在烹飪或放入微波爐之前，請務必將食物從塑膠薄膜中取出」。 「當你加熱塑膠時，微塑膠會加速從包裝材料中移動到食物中」。
環保倡議組織自然資源保護委員會 建議，買一個有拉鍊的布袋，然後要求乾洗店把衣服放入去，而不是用那些薄薄的塑膠袋。帶一個旅行杯去當地的咖啡店買外賣，帶一些進食用的金屬刀叉到辦公室，以減少塑膠杯子和餐具的使用。
Landrigan說: 「購物時不要使用塑膠袋。使用布袋或紙袋或回收袋。如果可以的話，盡量避免使用塑膠水瓶」。
2024 年 3 月的一項研究發現，1 公升瓶裝水（相當於消費者通常購買的兩瓶標準瓶裝水）平均含有 24 萬個來自七種塑膠的塑膠顆粒。其中約 90% 是奈米塑膠。
Landrigan說: 「使用金屬或玻璃飲水杯而不是塑膠杯。將食物存放在玻璃容器中，而不是塑膠容器中」; 「在當地社區努力禁止使用塑膠袋，就像美國許多社區現在所做的那樣。你可以做很多事情」。
So, human brain samples collected at
autopsy contain more tiny plastic than samples collected eight years ago. It is also noted that the percentage of
plastics in the brain is higher compared with other organs. I am wondering when
will know the long-term harmful effects of plastics to our health.
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