25-05-2025
#47: Microplastics- The unwanted passenger in our bodies—and what to do about it
Dr. Nickhil Jakatdar has been working at the cutting edge of preventive health and longevity over the last 10 years with the 3 D's – data, doctors, and dietitians – to go from being diagnosed with heart disease at the age of 41, to now having all his blood markers and body measurements in the green and his epigenetic biological age at 41 while his chronological age is 51. With a Ph.D. in Electrical Engineering and Computer Science from UC Berkeley and more than 60 patents to his name, Dr. Jakatdar has always believed in a scientific, data driven and practical approach to solving problems. He has founded or run 5 startups in the areas of semiconductors, consumer mobile video and molecular diagnostics and serves on the Advisory Boards of the South Asian Heart Center in California, the Center for Information Technology Research in the Interest of Society (CITRIS), has been a TEDx speaker and has been the youngest recipient of the esteemed UC Berkeley Distinguished Alumni Award. LESS ... MORE
No one knowingly has plastic as part of their meals, but the reality is: we're likely consuming it every day. Not because we're careless, but because modern life is saturated with it—from our food packaging to the clothes we wear, from bottled water to the air in our homes.
According to some estimates, the average person ingests between 39,000 and 52,000 plastic particles annually. That's not clickbait—it's from systematic analyses of real food and water samples: seafood, vegetables, protein powders, even salt.
And yes, plastic has been found in human lungs, blood, breast milk, placenta, and brain tissue. But the real question is: what does this mean for our long-term health?
What are microplastics?
Microplastics are plastic fragments less than 5 mm long, often the result of larger items breaking down over time. Nanoplastics are even smaller—less than 1 micrometer—small enough to potentially pass through cell membranes. These particles come from both obvious and hidden sources:
Obvious: bottles, wrappers, takeout containers, synthetic fabrics.
Hidden: tea bags, detergent pods, skin creams, household dust, tire particles, and synthetic clothing.
How do microplastics enter our bodies?
The primary route is ingestion—from drinking water, processed foods, and seafood. But exposure also occurs via:
Inhalation of household dust, vehicle tire particles, and airborne fibers.
Skin contact, possibly, through products like sunscreen and lotion (this is speculative).
Once inside, these particles don't just pass through. Studies have found them embedded in lungs, liver, arteries, testes, placenta, and brain tissue. They're not inert either—they interact with our biology.
What is the impact of these microplastics on our bodies?
We're early in the research curve, but here's what's emerging:
Microplastics may trigger inflammation and oxidative stress, key drivers of aging and chronic disease.
Chemical additives in plastics—like BPA and phthalates—are well-known endocrine disruptors, altering hormone signaling.
In the gut, they may damage the lining and alter the microbiome, affecting immunity and metabolism.
A few human studies have added concern:
Plastic particles have been found in artery plaque, and those individuals with higher levels of these particles were 4.5 times more likely to experience heart attacks or strokes.
Workers in plastic factories show higher rates of cancer, cardiovascular disease, and premature death.
Is this definitive proof? No. But early signs that these microplastics may be affecting our bodies make it worth addressing—especially given how easy it is to reduce exposure.
What can you do to reduce exposure?
You can't eliminate microplastics completely. But like improving your VO₂ max or reducing insulin resistance, small, consistent steps can shift the trajectory. Here's what I am doing to reduce my plastic load in practical ways:
1. Stop Heating Food in Plastic—Always
Plastic breaks down faster with heat. Microwaving or boiling food in plastic causes nanoplastics to leach into your food—even in 'microwave-safe' containers. This is what I do:
Use glass or ceramic dishes for heating, whether it is leftovers from a restaurant meal that was packed in a plastic container, frozen meals and 'boil-in-bag' rice or vegetables.
Avoid pouring hot liquids into plastic bottles, shakers, or cups.
Avoid drinking water from plastic bottles as much as possible because I have no idea when those bottles were left in the sun or in heated areas in the supply-chain to bring it to me. Instead, I carry my water in those 1 liter stainless-steel bottles.
2. Filter your water—don't just trust the tap (or the bottle)
One study found bottled water may contain 100x more nanoplastics than tap. At home, I have made the following changes around drinking water:
I use an activated carbon filter at home because it improves taste, removes chlorine and pesticides, retains healthy minerals, and doesn't waste water—unlike Reverse Osmosis, which strips everything and produces wastewater (waste 2-3 liters of water for every 1 liter of filtered water).
3. Prioritize minimally processed, whole foods
Highly processed foods tend to have higher microplastic content due to packaging, handling, and contact with plastic processing surfaces. Here is what we do at our home instead:
Buy unpackaged produce when possible.
Wash and peel root vegetables thoroughly.
Opt for fresh cuts of meat or paneer from the store—avoid items that are breaded, pre-marinated, or vacuum-sealed with additives or preservatives.
While I personally don't eat much seafood, I recommend buying seafood only from sources that offer wild-caught options, as farmed fish tend to contain higher levels of microplastics and other contaminants.
4. Upgrade your kitchen tools
Chopping vegetables on plastic boards or stirring with plastic utensils can release fragments into your food—especially when heated. A few years ago my wife made the following change
Moved to hardwood cutting boards.
Switched to stainless steel, copper, ceramic, and wrought iron pots, pans, and utensils.
5. Avoid detergent pods and plastic-coated cleaners
Pods are made with polyvinyl alcohol (PVA), which doesn't always fully degrade and contributes to environmental plastic load. So we switched to:
Liquid or powder detergent in paper-based boxes.
Concentrates or refillable containers that skip single-use packaging. However, there is still plastic packaging involved and we haven't found a great solution to this as yet. Ideas welcome!
6. Watch out for plastics in tea, supplements, and skincare
Plastics show up in places you'd never expect; this is what surprised me the most because I wouldn't have imagined the following as sources of microplastics—from tea bags sealed with plastic to coatings on capsules and creams. Here are a few changes we made:
On those rare occasions I have green tea, I use loose-leaf tea in a stainless-steel infuser.
Choose supplements in softgel or powder form with clean ingredient labels. Since the supplement industry isn't regulated, this is one of the trickier ones to manage. I try to find supplements that follow good manufacturing practices (GMP) standards. However, this usually makes those supplements more expensive.
Use mineral-based sunscreens (zinc oxide or titanium dioxide) and plastic-free moisturizers.
Final thought:
My goal in writing about this topic of reducing microplastic exposure isn't to add to your list of things to worry about, but rather to increase awareness. If you can make even a few of the changes above that are practical and easy for you to put into action, you will reduce your risks that much more.
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Views expressed above are the author's own.
