Plastic has definitely made a huge impact on this planet, so much so that nearly everything you touch every single day contains plastic. In fact, it is hard to imagine what life was like in the early 1960's before plastics were so widely available and used in nearly everything you touch.
Alarmingly, animals and humans have been consuming plastics, resulting in health problems and even death in animals, and with unknown consequences for humans. The cycle begins with plastics which end up in nature (most frequently in oceans), these plastics absorb toxins and chemicals. The plastics are then consumed by wildlife, which are consumed by other animals or humans. The toxins and chemicals are passed from the animals to other animals and humans who consume them.
A study from 2019 showed that on average people consume at least 50,000 micro-particles of plastic per year. It is unclear exactly how all of these plastics are consumed by humans each year. Although some sources are from the animals that humans consume which have consumed micro plastics and from water which contains microplastics. Bisphenol A (BPA) is a chemical commonly used in plastics such as water bottles. BPA can seep into the liquids and foods contained in the plastic containers and is considered hazardous to human health, but whether or not it is carcinogenic is up for debate.
The good news is there are ways to reduce your plastic consumption and hopefully increase your health. The bad news is that without a larger societal change, there will still be pollution which impacts animals and humans. In order to reduce your personal consumption, you can avoid using plastics for consumption, opting for other options such as glass containers or beeswax, or buy products without plastic (such as your skin and hair products). These options typically are longer lasting, resulting in a reduction of waste and pollution, and do not contain harmful chemicals. Societally, there needs to be an increase in recycling and an overall decrease on the reliance of plastics.
We already know about the pollution which results from our over dependence of plastics, I am sure everyone has seen images of turtles and birds caught in plastic rings meant to contain a six pack. However, there is a much larger issue with the plastics we use every day. They are poisoning us, our water, and the animals who come into contact with them. Individually, there are modifications you can make in your daily life to reduce your reliance on plastics. Although it is important to do what you can to protect yourself from the pollution, it is unavoidable until it is addressed on a larger scale and everyone needs to take personal responsibility in doing their part to reduce pollution so that we can get back to drinking water which does not contain plastic particles.
https://peaceriverfiltration.com.au/blogs/micro-plastic-in-our-drinking-water/micro-plastic-in-our-drinking-water
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