Microplastics are plastics, but much, much smaller, hence the name. The dangerous thing about microplastics is that they can become so small that they can begin to end up unknowingly swallowed by marine wildlife, or even passing through filters on the way to your tap. They’re so prolific that scientists have even found them falling in rain and simply drifting through the air. Because plastics take a long time to break down, these particles are able to stick around and potentially build up in the organisms that consume them.
Experts haven’t come to a consensus on the long term health costs of this build up in humans, but they do know it’s happening, and that it’s probably not good. In the Netherlands and UK, scientists discovered microplastics in both donor blood reserves and inside the lungs of surgical patients. Some studies have found it difficult to even find live subjects to test that are clean from any microplastics. The build up of microplastics could cause all kinds of problems in the long term to soft tissues in the body, it’s just hard to tell exactly what that will be.
This proliferation is all the more concerning given that plastics are not always made to be non-toxic. A recent analysis at the Institute of Environmental Engineering in Zurich, Switzerland into the various chemicals that make up plastic compounds identified 10,000 distinct chemicals that could be present in plastic compounds. The same analysis identified 2,400 of these of “potential concern” given their toxicity. And none of this even factors in the 8,681 other chemicals that make up additives for flexibility or color. Additives which can leach into groundwater, or more worryingly, into our bodies.
The textile industry’s push toward synthetic fabrics has only contributed to the issue of microplastics. Polyester, nylon, and other plastic-based fabrics are especially prone to producing loose plastic particles. In fact, it’s thought that 35% of the microplastics found in the ocean come from textiles. And it’s likely that washing clothing or bedding made from polyester or other synthetic fabrics is enough to begin proliferating these particles into the environment. The washing process tends to erode textile products ever so slightly each time. This is a much expedited process compared to hard plastics, as your blanket doesn’t have to make it all the way to the ocean to start breaking down into tiny fibers. Purely cotton or wool products break down in the wash too, but since those products are biodegradable, the toll is not nearly so dire.
