Researchers make disturbing discovery about health risks lurking in common products: 'Highlights the critical need for further exploration'
The findings suggest some concerning signs that demand further exploration into long-term health risks that could be linked to microplastic exposure and ingestion, such as the potential for gut inflammation and microbiome disruption.
Polylactic acid, or PLA, is a bioplastic commonly marketed as biodegradable or compostable, and it's often used in food packaging. Made from fermented plant starch rather than fossil fuels, when broken down under the right conditions, it can degrade into lactic acid, generally understood as safe. However, PLA can also break down incompletely, resulting in some divided opinions on the material and its potential health and environmental advantages over traditional plastics.
Researchers from China say their new findings indicate that PLA microplastics can break down into nanoparticles inside the body and potentially trigger a range of harmful biological responses. In their study, published in June online by the Journal of Hazardous Materials, mice were orally exposed to a daily dose of PLA microplastics. Researchers noted that "the particles retrieved from mouse feces exhibited a significant size reduction, breaking down from the micrometer scale to the nanometer scale."
Short-term oral exposure appeared to impact gut microbiota and induce inflammation, while longer-term exposure seemed to cause persistent changes, including to the metabolism. The co-authors of this new study say the research "highlights the critical need for further exploration into the long-term health risks of microplastic exposure," even when it comes to materials manufactured to be biodegradable or compostable.
While microplastic pollution has been studied in marine animals and environments, as well as the occasional tortoise or donkey, this study focuses on the potential for serious risks to human health and looks at PLA microplastics in particular.
In 2019, a research team, with support from the World Wide Fund, estimated that people may consume up to 5 grams of microplastics per week — roughly the weight of a credit card. Some studies have also investigated possible links between microplastic exposure and chronic illnesses, such as endometriosis, though these studies have largely looked at traditional plastics.
When PLA microplastics are used, it tends to be because of their eco-friendly image as a biodegradable alternative to traditional plastic types. Leveraging safe, sustainable alternatives to fossil fuel-based products is critical, but this study shows that bioplastics may still pose health threats inside the body, meriting further investigation.
The researchers suggest that nanoparticles resulting from PLA breakdown could disrupt gut bacteria and contribute to inflammation, which has been linked to a range of illnesses from liver disease to neurodegenerative disorders.
While more research is needed to provide a complete and thorough understanding of the potential impacts of microplastics — including from bioplastics — on our well-being, this study points toward the possibility that reducing their use could come with some health benefits. As more experts are suggesting, while we don't yet have a full picture of microplastic hazards, we may have enough information to warrant making some changes now.
Do you worry about air pollution in and around your home?
Yes — always
Yes — often
Yes — sometimes
No — never
Click your choice to see results and speak your mind.
Steps like cutting back on single-use plastic cutlery and straws at restaurants, opting for non-plastic reusable containers and shopping bags, and minimizing plastic-packaged food may help reduce personal exposure and the amount of plastic waste in the world.
On a broader level, stronger regulations, corporate accountability, and funding for more research are all critical to curbing plastic pollution and protecting public health. Encouragingly, studies like this are pushing the conversation forward, showing that biodegradable may not always mean completely harmless.
Join our free newsletter for good news and useful tips, and don't miss this cool list of easy ways to help yourself while helping the planet.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Forbes
36 minutes ago
- Forbes
2 Reasons Why You're Experiencing ‘Relationship Burnout,' By A Psychologist
Healthy relationships allow space for give-and-take. But if you constantly put your partner's needs ... More ahead of yours, it can leave you emotionally drained. Being in a relationship naturally shifts your focus from just yourself to sharing a life with someone else. You trade in endless 'me time' for moments spent thinking of them, sometimes even giving up personal opportunities for the sake of the relationship. Maybe you turned down a job in another city because your partner's career kept you where you were. Maybe you canceled your solo travel plans to support them through a rough patch. Maybe you've cared for their sick parents or juggled childcare responsibilities when they were caught up with work. Your partner may also have made their fair share of sacrifices, but it's not about keeping score. Relationships don't need to be transactional. Instead, both partners should be willingly putting in the effort to sustain their relationship. However, a recent study published in the Journal of Social and Personal Relationships shows that feeling like you're sacrificing too much is associated with relational stress and burnout. Based on responses from over 700 married individuals, researchers assessed how often people made sacrifices in their relationship and how it impacted their well-being and needs. They also evaluated whether they felt burned out or emotionally exhausted in their romantic relationship. Relational sacrifices involve giving up on your personal interests and desires for your partner, going above and beyond what you need to do for them and offering greater resources them, including time and mental energy. But how much is too much, and when does it start to affect us? The study points to two factors that can influence how we perceive relational sacrifices and whether or not we think they are worth it. These factors affect our experiences of burnout. 1. Relational Equity While it's tempting to act in self-serving ways, in order to form meaningful connections, we must consider others. It takes effort to realize that we don't always need to 'win' arguments or say hurtful things. When we learn to think for those beyond ourselves, our relationships — whether romantic or platonic — evolve into a two-way street. We enter romantic relationships with hopes of a partnership. We hope to receive some relational benefits in return for what we contribute. Such benefits may include love, intimacy, effort, time and generosity. But when we start feeling like we're doing too much and getting too little in return, it leaves us wondering if the relationship is one-sided. This is why relational equity is so important. It's not about doing the exact same things for one another. Rather, it's about making sure that both of you feel that what you give and what you receive is fair, according to what each of you bring to the table. Healthy relationships thrive on balance, without which, you start to feel resentful. When you feel that your partner is taking you for granted, you'll likely feel emotionally worn out, pessimistic and fatigued. This is called 'couple burnout.' Researchers found that lower levels of relational equity are associated with a strong perception that one's sacrifices are harmful. This strong perception of harm is, in turn, associated with higher levels of couple burnout. Often, this burnout happens sooner than you'd expect, especially if you're in a relationship with someone with different preferences, interests and priorities. In such cases, one partner may be going out of their way to accommodate the interests of the other. This threatens not only the well-being of the individual making sacrifices, but also the foundation of the relationship, where one is positioned to 'receive' more than the other. In light of relational equity, it's also important that both partners feel their efforts and contributions are valued, even if they aren't identical. 2. Appreciation For Your Efforts No matter what you do for your partner, whether it's sacrificing your career to become a stay-at-home parent or leaving post-it notes with beautifully packed lunch boxes, you deserve a 'thank you.' In the study, participants were asked if they felt appreciated by their partners, and if their partner expressed admiration and gratitude towards them. Researchers found that feeling appreciated by your partner changes how you see your sacrifices. They tend to perceive their sacrifices as less 'harmful' and more worthwhile for the growth of the relationship. Another 2022 study published in Psychological Science supports this finding, by showing that satisfaction levels tend to drop when people feel they're doing more household work than their partner. The study assessed over 2000 participants, including 476 couples (where both partners participated) from the United States and Canada, focusing on how they shared household tasks during the COVID-19 pandemic. Researchers found that people were less satisfied in their relationship if they felt they were doing more housework, and found the division of labor unfair. However, if they felt appreciated by their partner, they didn't feel as unhappy or frustrated, even when the share of housework wasn't equally divided. This shows that appreciation can go a long way in preventing relationship burnout. 'Feeling appreciated also appeared to buffer against the negative effects of doing less, suggesting that feeling appreciated may offset the relational costs of unequal division of labor, regardless of who contributes more,' the researchers explain. Of course, this doesn't mean that appreciation is the ultimate solution for relational inequity — both partners actively stepping up to do their bit is. Here are some steps couples can take to avoid relationship burnout: It's perfectly normal to have expectations of reciprocity in our relationships, but sacrifices should come with the right intentions. For instance, you shouldn't give in to your partner's demands just to avoid conflict or to be a 'good' partner. True sacrifice should come from a place of care and genuine goodwill for your partner — and it should go both ways. When both partners are willing to make thoughtful sacrifices for each other without losing themselves, the relationship stands a real chance to grow and thrive. Are you feeling burnt out in your relationship? Take this science-backed test to learn more: Couple Burnout Measure
Gizmodo
5 hours ago
- Gizmodo
Origami Space Planes Could Solve a Major Problem in Orbit
Building a spacecraft could one day be as simple as folding a piece of paper into a plane and letting aerodynamics do the rest. A team of researchers from the University of Tokyo simulated the release of a paper airplane from the International Space Station (ISS) to see if would survive atmospheric reentry. In a paper published in Acta Astronautica, the researchers demonstrated how origami may be the solution to low Earth orbit's growing trash problem. Rather than relying solely on metals to construct spacecraft, the team behind the paper argues that a standard sheet of paper could do the job instead and easily burn up in the atmosphere during reentry. For their study, the researchers created a paper plane with an aluminum tail and placed it in a wind tunnel to see how it would fare in space. The idea is simple, and it aims to show how organic materials can be used to create a more sustainable orbital environment. The origami space plane is made from a sheet of uncoated A4 printing paper, with folded layers at the nose to shift its center of mass upstream and ensure aerodynamic stability. 'Such spacecraft have not yet flown in space,' the paper reads. 'It is unclear whether their flight dynamics in the highly rarefied atmosphere in [low Earth orbit] would be similar to those of a usual ground-based origami plane, and whether the plane would survive or burn up during atmospheric entry.' Of course, the entire spacecraft wouldn't be made solely of paper. Instead, specific components—like a wing or drag sail—could be constructed from paper-based materials. To test it out, the researchers first created a simulation of the paper plane being launched from the ISS at an altitude of 248 miles (400 kilometers) and a speed of 17,448 miles per hour (7,800 meters per second). The paper plane remained stable and glided through the space-like conditions. It began to tumble at a lower altitude of 74 miles above Earth's surface (120 kilometers) and spun out of control. The tumbling motion is expected at this altitude, and the severe aerodynamic heating would result in the paper plane burning up in the atmosphere at around 55 to 58 miles (90 to 110 kilometers) altitude, according to the paper. The researchers then placed a physical model in the Kashiwa Hypersonic and High Enthalpy Wind Tunnel at the University of Tokyo to see how it would hold up during reentry conditions. They subjected it to Mach 7 speeds for about seven seconds, during which the plane's nose bent and the wings showed signs of charring. It didn't fully disintegrate, though, but it most likely would have had they kept it in there for a longer period of time, the researchers said. Upon atmospheric reentry, traditional spacecraft leave behind metallic particles and chemicals that damage the ozone layer. The paper plane, on the other hand, is made of organic material that doesn't pose an environmental threat. Still, there are some challenges that remain. Considering how small the paper plane is, it does not reflect radar strongly enough and would be hard to track in orbit. The researchers suggest equipping it with a miniaturized position, navigation, and timing transceiver. It's also extremely sensitive to aerodynamic drag and therefore can only spend so much time in orbit, so it can be used for short-duration missions with small payloads. The origami space plane will likely not be a good fit for a wide range of missions, but the researchers suggest a version of it could be used as a passive probe to measure atmospheric density or as a platform for low-cost and short-lived missions in low Earth orbit. 'Owing to the extremely low cost of a paper space plane, multiple deployments could be conducted at the same time, and repeated at regular intervals, providing simultaneous distributed measurements,' the scientists explained in their paper. The idea of a childlike space plane gliding through the atmosphere may seem too simple, but using paper on spacecraft could help us resolve the overpopulation of metal crowding low Earth orbit and disintegrating into chunks of space scrap.
Yahoo
5 hours ago
- Yahoo
New study reveals single dietary factor that increases risk for heart disease: 'Our findings strengthen the importance'
New study reveals single dietary factor that increases risk for heart disease: 'Our findings strengthen the importance' An international study found that diets low in fiber may contribute to a higher risk of heart attacks, offering another reason to eat more plants. Researchers analyzed heart scans from nearly 1,400 people across Europe and Australia and discovered a clear link between low fiber intake and the buildup of dangerous plaques in the arteries. These plaques were more likely to rupture and lead to serious cardiac events. The study was published in the journal Cardiovascular Research and focused on people with existing coronary artery disease. "Our findings strengthen the importance of cardioprotective dietary recommendations," the researchers noted in the study's conclusion. The benefits of fiber were consistent even among those already taking heart medications or cholesterol-lowering drugs. While fiber has long been associated with improved digestion, reduced inflammation, and better blood sugar control, this study is among the first to directly connect fiber intake to the makeup of arterial plaques. Specifically, people who ate less fiber were more likely to have lipid-rich plaques, which are softer and more prone to rupture than fibrous or calcified plaques. That rupture risk can trigger heart attacks, even in people already on medication, making fiber an important yet often overlooked part of long-term heart care. A 2025 report from the American College of Cardiology linked plant-based eating patterns to a reduced risk of heart disease and stroke, indicating that other researchers have come to similar conclusions. And a long-term study from the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health found that replacing red meat with legumes, nuts, or whole grains significantly lowered the risk of heart-related death, especially in younger adults. There are several health benefits. Fiber-rich diets are tied to reduced inflammation, improved cholesterol control, and more stable blood sugar, all of which can help prevent artery damage over time. Heart-healthy eating patterns such as the Mediterranean and DASH diets emphasize whole grains, vegetables, and legumes not only for weight control but also because they support long-term cardiovascular health. These findings align with other recent research that shows how dietary changes, even small ones, can lower the risk of chronic illness. Why do you eat plant-based foods? The health benefits It's cheaper It's good for the planet I prefer the taste Click your choice to see results and speak your mind. Join our free newsletter for easy tips to save more and waste less, and don't miss this cool list of easy ways to help yourself while helping the planet. Solve the daily Crossword
