Garbage to Guts: The Slow-Churn of Plastic Waste

The earth’s oceans contain vortexes of plastic trash. These slow-swirling patches of suspended debris span a collective area of millions of square kilometers.¹ Polyethylene—commonly used for medical, cosmetic, food wrapping, and industrial purposes—is the most prevalent marine plastic contaminant.² Much of this waste is microplastic (MP) particles, which disrupt the delicate balance of marine and terrestrial ecosystems from the tiniest microorganisms all the way up the food chain. Humans consume up to five grams of MPs a week³—the equivalent of five paper clips—through various routes, turning the human body into its own reservoir of MP waste.⁴ Researchers discovered MPs flowing through human blood⁵ and islands of MPs in various organs, including the liver, kidney, spleen, lungs, and placenta.^6-10 Humans also excrete MPs in their stool.¹¹

The gastrointestinal (GI) tract is the most common entryway for MPs, and is a gateway to more widespread systemic dysfunction. In a recent study published ...