From the Depths of the ocean to our beer – micro-plastic was found to be almost everywhere. A new study shows that the small plastic particles are also in our feces.
Micro-plastic has made it up in our bowel movement. Researchers at the Medical University of Vienna and the Austrian Federal environment Agency have reviewed the diet and the bowel movements of eight study participants from all over the world. For each participant micro-plastic was found in the feces.
On average, there were 20 micro-plastic particles per ten grams of feces, which were between 50 and 500 microns in size.
“Plastic is omnipresent in our everyday lives, and people are exposed to plastic in various forms,” says Philipp Schwabl, lead author of the study, he had not expected, however, “that any sample is positive.”
Micro-plastic is deliberately used in the toothpaste, the teeth whitening scratched
More: micro-plastic passes through mosquitoes in birds and bats
Where does the plastic in our feces?
Plastic is everywhere. Since the 50s it is used more and more frequently.
Microplastics are small plastic particles with a diameter of five millimeters or less. Some are deliberately produced and, for example, for facial scrubs or Zahncrèmes used. Others detach from larger plastic objects: for example fibers, the fall of the Washing of our clothes.
A total of were identified in the study, nine different plastic types in the stool samples. Most plastic particles were used for packaging, tissue and water bottles: Polypropolyen and polyethylene terephthalate.
“It is very likely,” suspected Schwabl, “our food is contaminated during the various packaging processing with plastic levels in the food”. Most of the participants had eaten in their everyday lives, from plastic bottles to drink or fish or seafood”.
More: more and more plastic waste in the Arctic
It is an eternal cycle – by fish, micro-plastic often gets in the us people
Danger to our health?
Almost every animal to Eat regularly micro plastic. The tiny plastic particles migrate from algae to tuna fish and ultimately to humans. The researchers warn that micro-plastic could also affect the health of people.
“What concerned us particularly, what implications could this have micro – plastic for patients with stomach and intestinal diseases,” said Schwabl. Because in studies with animals, the greatest number of plastic particles in the gut found. Especially small micro-plastic particles were found even in the bloodstream, in the lymphatic system and the liver.
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Micro plastic: How big is the risk?Small as Sand
Microplastics are small Plastic particles. They are smaller than five millimeters, and for it to be. Micro-plastic is produced during the decay of plastic waste, and by abrasion, washing clothes, and driving a car.
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Micro plastic: How big is the risk?Toothpaste with Mikoplastik
Some manufacturers don’t care, many people know it: The small blue dots are tiny plastic beads. Scrub when brushing teeth and to help with the cleaning. Later on, these beads will land Likely in the sea. Sewage treatment plants, micro-plastic can not filter most out.
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Micro plastic: How big is the risk?Cosmetics with a lot of plastic
Plastic beads in scrubs or shower gels, micro-plastics as an opacifier. The consumer will not be informed of the manufacturers, plastic and synthetic materials in your cosmetics. Environmentalists and authorities are calling for a ban on the tiny plastics.
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Micro plastic: How big is the risk?Made of synthetic fibers in micro-plastic is
Worldwide, the most of the micro-plastic is set by synthetic textiles. Around 60 percent of the clothes contain synthetic fibers, the Trend to use the cheap yarn is steep. When Washing a Fliesjacke be put up to a million fibres. In Europe, study landing, according to a EU-as a result, around 30,000 tons of synthetic fiber per year in the wastewater.
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Micro plastic: How big is the risk?Plastics in drinking water
Micro-plastic not only pollutes rivers and seas of the world – millions of people take daily invisible plastic fibers with tap water. US researchers had studied over 150 tap water samples in cities from five continents and found in 83 percent of the samples microscopic plastic fibers.
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Micro plastic: How big is the risk?Micro-plastic in the sea
From the abrasion of the art micro-plastic materials. Part of it is discharged into the sea. The largest quantities come from synthetic textiles, followed by car tires, town of dust and markings. The proportion of micro-plastics from personal care products is small in comparison.
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Micro plastic: How big is the risk?Ticking Time Bomb
From plastic waste, microplastics: A bag of up to 20 years, a plastic bottle takes up to 450 years. Everyone on the planet “consumes” on average, around 60 KG of plastic per year, North Americans and Western Europeans even more than 100 Kg. Around two per cent of the globally produced plastics end up in the sea.
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Micro plastic: How big is the risk?Trapped in plastic
The plastic flood doesn’t hit animals and humans, how exactly do we know that yet. The research is still in its infancy. It is clear, however, that plastic and micro-plastic ends up in all the stomachs. Animals starve to death therefore. According to current knowledge, a health risk is not known.
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Micro plastic: How big is the risk?Less Plastic?
Plastic is cheap to produce and in everyday life is often practical. In the world but ban been thinking increasingly about what policy can do: bags, disposable cups and micro-plastic in cosmetics, a duty to implement Recycling or plastic expensive? The best part is: Even volunteer to eco-friendly Alternatives.
What we don’t know yet
In a recent report on micro-plastic Alistair Boxall, Professor of environment and geography at York University, criticized that the animals under laboratory conditions and were often exposed to much higher micro-plastic quantities as they occur in nature.
“Although micro-plastic found in the environment and we find it both in salt water as well as in the drinking water, I believe that there is no evidence that the particles actually have an impact on the health of animals and people,” says Boxall, and adds: “I believe that there are other chemicals in the environment, which we should be much more to Worry about than micro plastic.”
The Vienna study leader Schwabl, cautions that further research is required.
“Now that we have the first evidence that micro-plastic is in the people, we need more Research to understand what that means for our health”.
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The world is drowning in plastic and what are you doing?How much plastic are you using?
Does it have to be constantly plastic? No, think more and more people. The companies respond: McDonald’s and Starbucks have announced their plastic straws through more sustainable models of exchange. Also, lunch boxes and eco-friendly To-go cups are “in”, but there is still more! Here are a few tips.
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The world is drowning in plastic and what are you doing?Lazy versus sustainable
In the 1970s, To-go food was the Trend. The idea spread from the United States like wildfire. Quickly what to Take, get, or bring, to dine comfortably at home on the Couch. The plastic waste is consistently ignoring. Tip: Prefer to get together with friends go out to eat or cooking, instead of chasing delivery services all over the city.
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The world is drowning in plastic and what are you doing?Polyester, Nylon and acrylic
Micro-plastic particles of our Laundry in the sewage systems and the water cycle of the city. Above all sportswear is made of Polyester, Nylon and other artificial fibers. But also in the everyday clothes you are are increasingly. Sustainably-produced clothing is often a little more expensive. To afford only a Few. But there are affordable Alternatives.
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The world is drowning in plastic and what are you doing?Stop Micro Waste
A company from Berlin has developed the “Guppyfriend”. A wash bag for everything, which includes artificial fibers such as Polyester and co.. The bag filters, allegedly, the small particles from the wash water. He should catch the particles. With the Hand the Remains were removed and in the garbage to dispose of, advertises the company.
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The world is drowning in plastic and what are you doing?Brushing your teeth in an ecological way
Where we are already at the topic of Hygiene: dentists, that we change every three months, the toothbrush. This is the way it should be, however, this cycle also ensures a lot of plastic waste. So, the next Time, not to the plastic toothbrush, but a wooden or bamboo brush with natural bristles to buy. Then brushing twice as good!
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The world is drowning in plastic and what are you doing?Small, but yuck
A still shorter life-time than tooth brushes have a cotton swab. The land abound to the trash and then often in the sea. Tip: There are already cotton swabs with paper stem. This is definitely the greener solution.
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The world is drowning in plastic and what are you doing?It’s even smaller
Shampoo, Make-up, shower gel, dental cream, in many of these products, micro plastic, but there are also many Alternatives. It is true: eye when shopping. Materials such as polyethylene (PE), polypropylene (PP), polyamide (PA) and polyethylene terephthalate (PET), should not appear under the ingredients.
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The world is drowning in plastic and what are you doing?Micro plastic from car tires
But enough of the cosmetics. In Germany, the highest proportion of micro-plastic dates back to the tire from the abrasion of the car. Crazy, right? According to the TU Berlin, approximately 120,000 tons of car get per year in Germany, tire abrasion in the environment. The substances, including plasticizers, be taken up by plants. One more reason to drive less.
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The world is drowning in plastic and what are you doing?Beer tastes better in glass
Our Feierwut contributes to environmental pollution. Almost all the Festivals, only plastic cups and bottles. “Rock am Ring”, for example, produced in three days, about 500 tons of garbage – most of it plastic. For safety reasons glass bottles are prohibited, of course, but there are plenty of Alternatives to disposable cups.
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The world is drowning in plastic and what are you doing?Coffee-to-go-Cup
Disposable cups are in the environment, the incarnation of the Evil guards. In particular, more sustainable options for coffee Germany to conquer now. But not everyone uses these cups, which is why environmentalists promote more vigorously – until in Germany, not more than 320,000 cups per hour to be thrown away. In the EU, we are one of the largest waste producers.
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The world is drowning in plastic and what are you doing?Edible Water Balls
By the way: the disposable plastic bottles made from PET are recyclable, a totally sustainable solution, but they are still. In contrast to these water balls. An edible membrane holds it All together. An unimaginable amount of plastic could be added to this Innovation, save, advertise, the London-based Creator of Ooho. But whether this will really catch on?