Scientists have issued a warning as a new study has linked exposure to microplastics to an increased risk of heart disease.
Researchers discovered that routine exposure to microplastics may speed up the formation of atherosclerosis, an artery-narrowing condition linked to heart attacks and stroke.
These microplastics can come from packaging, fabrics, and common consumer plastics. They are found almost everywhere now, including in food, drinking water, the air, and inside the human body.
Lead researcher Changcheng Zhou, from the University of California, said: “It’s nearly impossible to avoid microplastics completely.
“Still, the best strategy is to reduce exposure by limiting plastic use in food and water containers, reducing single-use plastics, and avoiding highly-processed foods.
“There are currently no effective ways to remove microplastics from the body, so minimizing exposure and maintaining overall cardiovascular health – through diet, exercise, and managing risk factors – remains essential.”
As part of the study, which was published in Environment International journal, the team looked at the impact of microplastics on mice.
Both male and female mice were given a low-fat, low-cholesterol diet similar to what a healthy person might eat. Researchers then administered microplastics daily (10 milligrams per kilogram of body weight) for nine weeks.
As reported by Science Daily, this amount is in line with levels that could realistically be encountered through contaminated food and water. The results reflected a sharp increase in atherosclerosis, but only in male mice.
Atherosclerosis occurs when your arteries become narrowed and hardened, making it difficult for blood to flow through them. It is typically seen in people with high cholesterol.
Male mice exposed to microplastics developed 63 per cent more plaque in the aortic root, the segment of the aorta connected to the heart, and 624 per cent more plaque in the brachiocephalic artery, a major vessel branching from the aorta in the upper chest. However, female mice exposed to the same conditions did not show significant plaque progression.
Prof Zhou commented: “Our findings fit into a broader pattern seen in cardiovascular research, where males and females often respond differently. Although the precise mechanism isn’t yet known, factors like sex chromosomes and hormones, particularly the protective effects of estrogen, may play a role.”
It was found that the microplastics did not cause weight gain or increased cholesterol in either sex. The mice stayed lean, and their lipid profiles remained the same, suggesting that obesity or high cholesterol did not explain the arterial damage.
Prof Zhou said: “Our study provides some of the strongest evidence so far that microplastics may directly contribute to cardiovascular disease, not just correlate with it,” Zhou said.
“The surprising sex-specific effect – harming males but not females – could help researchers uncover protective factors or mechanisms that differ between men and women.”
Prof Zhou and his team acknowledged that more work is needed to determine why males appear more susceptible. There are plans to investigate whether humans show similar patterns.
This story originally appeared on Express.co.uk
