Microplastics are everywhere, but you're not powerless

Microplastics are everywhere we test, from the environment to our own bodies. It feels hopeless. Lead exposure felt the same in the '70s. The government intervened, regulated the biggest offenders (gasoline, paint, and pipes), and American lead exposure dropped to inconsequential amounts within years.

With some well-placed lifestyle adjustments, we can get the same effect for microplastic consumption without waiting for the government to do it for us.

Defined as plastic fragments smaller than 5mm¹, micro and nanoplastics have been found everywhere we have tested for them. They have been found inside humans, in our food, and in remote environments and animals.

This makes sense. We literally engineered plastics to be inert! So they now persist in everything. They just break down into smaller bits and spread, without degrading.

To effectively reduce our consumption, we need to understand where the particles are coming from. Luckily, scientists have been studying this for years, and we have enough information to get started.

Your air

Indoor air carries 8x more microplastics than outdoor air², mostly because of synthetic textiles constantly shedding in a confined space. That faux fur rug feels nice under your feet, but at what cost? Indoor synthetics are responsible for 100k+ inhaled particles a year!³

Uncleaned air and AC filters happily re-release these particles back into your air as well, increasing concentration. Yuck.²

The fix: Regularly replaced HEPA or HyperHEPA AC filters^2,4. Open your windows more². Use water-based paints and natural fibers for furniture and clothing. Then brag about it to your friends.

Your kitchen

Older and scratched plastic items release far more particles than new ones. Unfortunately, getting scratched is a plastic cutting board's job! They release thousands of particles into your food per use.⁵

Damaged non-stick pans are even scarier, releasing millions of particles, because the particles are much smaller.⁶

Microwaving your food in plastic is alarmingly bad. One study found that a single square centimeter of container can shed over 4 million microplastic and 2 billion nanoplastic particles into your food in just three minutes.⁷

The fix: Cast iron and steel cookware, wooden cutting boards, and glass food-storage containers are what real chefs use anyway.

Your drinks

Water is tricky, since it varies so much by region and origin. Both bottled (72 particles per liter) and tap (50 per liter) water contain microplastics⁴, but the actual number from any one study shouldn't be taken too seriously. Levels vary widely by region, container type, etc.

Your hot tea and coffee in a plastic-lined paper cup, though? Definitely problematic. One study found 25,000 particles per 100 mL of hot water⁴!

Keeping with the confusing size discourse and not wanting to be shown up, tea bags release millions of particles per steep.⁴

The fix: Use a reverse osmosis water filter⁸, reuse steel water bottles and to-go cups, and try loose-leaf tea (you'll look cooler).

Your food

Organ meat has much higher particle concentration than muscle.⁹

• Chicken liver: up to 1,751 mg/kg of PET in one study¹⁰
• Pig lung tissue: up to 180,000 particles per kg¹¹
• Shellfish eaten whole, like mussels and oysters, means you're eating the digestive system too.⁴

The fix: This one is obvious. Eat organs and shellfish sparingly!

Your cigarettes

Stop smoking them. Please. Smokers' airways are full of particles.⁴

Bryan Johnson tested himself and reported 165 microplastic particles in a load of his semen. Eighteen months later, he retested at zero.¹² The changes were simple: sauna, reverse osmosis filtered water, and replacing plastic in his home.

This is just an anecdote from one professional weirdo, but it's a very promising one.