WHY ARE THERE MICROPLASTICS IN OUR FOOD?
Did you know that we consume as much as 5g worth of microplastics every week? That’s a credit card sized worth of plastics that we eat, drink or breath into our body!
WHAT ARE MICROPLASTICS? ^1
Microplastics are plastics particles or fragments that are less than 5mm in size. These plastic particles come from our plastic packaging, and plastic pollution in the sea and environment.
HOW DOES MICROPLASTICS GET INTO THE FOOD WE CONSUME? ^1&^2
#1: When we throw a plastic bag/bottle into the sea, sea creatures such as fishes can mistake it as food for consumption. And they are unable to fully digest the plastics, hence leaving microplastics that remain in their bodies. When these fishes are caught and sold for consumption, we indirectly consuming the microplastics too
#2: When we drink bottled/tap water, we ingest microplastics too. Although we have safe-to-drink tap water in Singapore, microplastics can still leak through the filtration process and remain in our drinking water.
#3: When we use single use plastic containers, bottles or plastic lunch boxes, the heat from the food/drink coming in contact with the packaging, releases microplastics chemicals that can affect our health in the long run.
#4: Apart from cooked food, snacks in plastic packaging also contribute to our microplastics consumption. The most direct way is when we tear/cut open a bag of chips and the microplastics from the packaging falls into the bag of chips which we then consume.
DOES IT POSE ANY RISKS IF WE CONSUME MICROPLASTICS?
A study done in 2019 by NUS marine scientists, found toxic bacteria on microplastics retrieved from Singapore’s tropical water. This study shows that there’s a diversity of bacteria (both good and bad) on microplastics which are capable of triggering wound infections if we consume them. ^3
And an article written recently in 2022 by Medical News Today UK, reported that microplastics consumption can disrupt our hormones and increase the risk of chronic disease, namely type-2 diabetes and heart disease. In addition, microplastic consumption can also increase inflammation which impairs our immune health. ^4
HOW CAN WE AVOID OR REDUCE CONSUMING MICROPLASTICS? ^2*^5
It is near impossible to avoid consuming microplastics as they are too tiny and they are everywhere. However, there are ways to reduce our consumption:
Reduce plastic use (Plastic containers, Utensils, Bags)
Use biodegradable plastics if you really have to use plastics
Opt for all things reusable – bags, straw, utensils, containers
Avoid food/drinks packaged in plastic packaging
Reduce plastic littering – Keep your plastic trash in the bins, not the waters
BREATHING IN MICROPLASTICS?
Microplastics are being breathed in due to the clothes we wear, the products we use and how the textiles are being treated. ^6 Breathing in microplastics is difficult to stop, hence we can only do our part to reduce what’s within our control.
Choose materials of clothing that are organic or pure cotton, linen, modal, tencel or lyocell ^7
Reduce the wear of plastic jewellery
Choose body/skincare products that are pure or clean (look at the ingredient list, the lesser the unknown ingredients, the better!)
We don’t need a handful of people doing zero plastic waste perfectly. We just need millions of people doing it imperfectly. So start making small changes today!
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