A study by scientists from Heriot-Watt University in Edinburgh has found that we could be swallowing more than 100 tiny plastic particles with every main meal. The plastic, which can come from soft furnishings and synthetic fabrics, gets into household dust that falls on plates and is consumed.
The researchers placed Petri dishes containing sticky dust traps on tables next to dinner plates in three homes during meal times. Up to 14 pieces of plastic were found in the Petri dishes at the end of a 20-minute meal, equivalent to 114 plastic fibres falling on an average dinner plate. The study concluded that the average person swallows up to 68,415 potentially dangerous plastic fibres a year simply through sitting down to eat.
Experts warn that ingesting plastic particles can damage lungs, poison kidneys, and interfere with hormones. The findings confirm the alarming spread of plastic in the air, previously highlighted by the Daily Mail's investigation which found that fillets of fresh fish from supermarkets contain up to 139 pieces of plastic per 240g.
Dr Ted Henry, senior author of the study and professor of environmental toxicology at Heriot-Watt University, said: 'These results may be surprising to some people who may expect the plastic fibres in seafood to be higher than those in household dust.' The plastic fibres found in home-cooked meals are believed to come from household dust rather than the food or cooking environment.
Julian Kirby of Friends of the Earth commented: 'Plastic microfibres found in the dust in our homes and the air we breathe can come from car tyres, carpets and soft furnishings, as well as clothes such as fleece jackets. We urgently need the Government to adopt an action plan to end plastic pollution and research the possible impacts of environmental plastic on human health.'
