Evidence
October 2025
Prenatal PFAS levels associated with brain structure and function in five-year olds
51 Finnish mothers had their blood checked for PFAS levels at 24 weeks pregnancy. Later, at five years of age, their children had MRIs that assessed structure and function. Higher blood levels were associated with worse findings on the MRI. Obviously there are a lot of potential confounders, and maybe higher PFAS levels are a marker for some other negative risk factor, but still very concerning nonetheless.
Microplastics change gut biome in manner similar to that seen in cancer and depression
Researchers at the Center for Biomarker Research in Medicine (CBmed) in Austria introduced common consumer plastics to stool cultures from five healthy volunteers. Resulting microbiome cultures showed no change in the overall bacteria count but alterations in the ratios of different types of bacteria as well as a drop in pH - similar to the microbiome changes seen in both colorectal cancer and depression.
Researchers in South Africa for the first time demonstrated the feasibility of using magnetic nano composites, or ‘magnetic cleaning powders’, to bind microplastics in both drinking water and wastewater. A magnet can then be used to pull the clumps of plastic out. This technique appeared to be highly effective (usually removed 80 - 90% of the plastic), reusable, and likely safe for plants. It worked well very small plastic particles but not as well with larger ones that were measurable in millimeters.
September 2025
Plastic able to circumvent Casparian strip in vegetables
The Casparian strip is a filter in the root of plants that should ideally only let water and nutrients pass through. Researches at the University of Plymouth found that nanoplastics were able to penetrate this filter and ascend to the leafy shoots. This helps explain why plastics have been found in fruits and vegetables in multiple studies.
Synthetic microplastics in hot and cold beverages in the UK
As usual, heated drinks contained more plastics than non-heated ones. They estimated the average total daily intake of microplastics from all fluids consumed to be 1.65 MPs/kg BW/day. For the average American adult, this is about 140 microplastic particles a day from fluids. Every tested drink had some microplastics.
August 2025
Plastic exposure linked with Alzheimer’s-like changes in mice model
Apoliproprotein E (APOE) is a major risk factor for Alzheimer’s disease. Mice with APOE exposed to excess plastic developed neurocognitive and regulatory pathway alterations as well as changes in brain biomarkers not seen in plastics-exposed mice without APOE. This suggests a potential synergistic effect between plastics and APOE in the development of Alzheimer’s.
The Lancet Countdown on health and plastics
A call to arms to kick-off a new series from The Lancet. Thorough and very well-written. Some snippets below:
Plastics are a grave, growing, and under-recognised danger to human and planetary health. Plastics cause disease and death from infancy to old age and are responsible for health-related economic losses exceeding US$1·5 trillion annually.
The world is in a plastics crisis. This crisis has worsened alongside the other planetary threats of our time and is contributing to climate change, pollution, and biodiversity loss.
The 2023 analysis by the Minderoo–Monaco Commission on plastics and health found that plastics harm human health at every stage of the plastic lifecycle, that these health-relateddamages result in massive economic losses that are borne by society, and that plastics-associated harms fall disproportionately on low-income people and at-risk populations
July 2025
Microplastics in hemodialysis and peritoneal dialysis fluids
Looked at 30 hemodialysis and peritoneal fluid bags; found approximately one relatively large (~0.1 - 1 mm) microplastic particle per liter bag. Would be interesting to study the concentration of smaller particles such as nanoplastics. Some of the colors of the plastic particles matched the color of the caps on the bottles, in alignment with the “Dirty Cap” theory seen in the study from Chaib et al. in France (glass bottles had plastic particle contamination from their caps that lead to more plastic particles than seen in plastic bottles!)
June 2025
Review concludes microplastics are in, and are damaging, our bones
Review of 62 studies found that present in bone and can stimulate osteoclasts, which contribute to osteoporosis-like changes. Plastic also found to interfere with regeneration of bone.
Comprehensive review of microplastics and nanoplastics in single-use plastic water bottles
Review of over 141 articles estimated that annual ingestion by consumers is between 39,000 and 52,000 microplastic particles, with single-use plastic water bottle users potentially ingesting an additional 90,000 particles per year. Study also notes that the mere act of opening and closing a plastic water bottle can increase particle release, as can just squeezing the bottle to drink it (cause abrasions and friction between the plastic and the water).