Did You Know That You Consume Plastic Every Day?
Well I learned something today - apparently we as humans ingest plastic in a variety of ways on a daily basis.
I had heard at one time that there were some products, even cookies, that contained small amounts of plastic so I just avoided eating the brands that were mentioned in the news at that time. What I didn't know was that tiny particles of plastic have managed to get in our water, our air and even everyday food we eat.
According to FOX 17, we are likely consuming tiny pieces of plastic, called microplastics, every day without knowing it. A new study finds the average person could be swallowing about five grams of plastic every week which amounts to about a credit card size worth of plastic.
Since plastic doesn't go away, I wonder how the body handles it? I bought an old farm a couple years ago and I am constantly unearthing old plastic jugs from years past that may have dried up and turned brittle, but the plastic is still there, just in smaller pieces for me to pick up.
I am sure there are filters in the water supply to catch the big stuff, but there is really nothing other than maybe a reverse osmosis water purifier but that would cost a fortune to find a machine big enough to handle a town's water supply. Now you can purchase a smaller home reverse osmosis water purifier to help clean your water at home.
A water purifier can be great, but how do we control the amount of plastic particles that are in our air not to mention food that is processed by companies whose water is unfiltered meaning the microplastics can wind up in our food and won't even know it's there.
Scientists say that every six months we ingest enough plastic to fill a cereal bowl. Over the course of our lifetime we can take in two large recycling bins of plastic.
Scientists still haven't been able to determine if there are any long term health effects from ingesting all this plastic.
If you are looking for more ways to reduce your plastic intake, avoid drinking bottled water and liquids from plastic containers while drinking tap water. Also try eating more fresh food that you can rinse off before preparing.