Microplastics are present everywhere in our world. If you have any doubt about that, then you might be surprised to learn that even the icy plains of Antarctica have been affected by plastic-related garbage, though you don’t see people too often around there.
Therefore, it’s no wonder that we ingest plastic, as well. A study from the past revealed that plastic is present in our feces, maybe due to consuming food from plastic packaging.
However, a recent pilot study discovered something a lot more concerning than that – Babies presented higher concentrations of microplastics in their intestines than adults from the same area.
Particularly, on average, more microplastics were discovered in the feces of six one-year-old babies from NYC than in the feces of 10 adults.
The meconium (the earliest form of stool) of three New York newborns, on the other hand, presented concentrations similar to those of adults.
The discovery suggests that infants are more exposed to microplastics than regular adults, which may be due to factors like child-safe plastic feeding tools, sippy cups, pacifiers, or plastic toys that babies tend to chew on while teething.
The study is solid proof that the phenomenon requires further investigations, particularly as the long-term health implications could be severe.
“Our data provide baseline evidence for microplastic exposure doses in infants and adults and support the need for further studies with a larger sample size to corroborate and extend our findings,” noted the researchers.
For the moment, the health impacts of involuntarily consuming microplastics are unknown, but they may be direr than we once believed.
Recent studies proved that microplastics under a particular size threshold could go past cell membranes and enter the circulatory system, which can have a negative impact on cell function.
The researchers explained that they discovered considerable differences in the patterns of two types of microplastics between infant and adult feces.
“PET concentrations were significantly higher in infant feces than in adult feces, whereas concentrations of PC microplastics were not significantly different between the two age groups. The microplastics measured in infant and adult feces were thought to be primarily derived from dietary sources,” they added.
