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Assessment of Human Exposure Risk From Microplastic Contamination in Commercially Important Fish Species Sold in Local Markets of Mawlamyine, Myanmar
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Every single fish tested from markets in Myanmar, all 238 of them, contained microplastic particles in their gut or gills, mostly tiny plastic fibers. If you eat one serving of fish a day, researchers estimate you could swallow anywhere from about 6 to 37 plastic particles, though what this means for long-term health is still unknown.
ABSTRACT Microplastic (MP) contamination was investigated in the gastrointestinal tract (GIT) and gills of 238 fish representing eight commercially important species collected from retail markets in Mawlamyine, Myanmar. MPs were detected in the GIT and/or gills of all examined fish, corresponding to a prevalence of 100%. Mean total abundance ranged from 5.44 ± 1.23 particles fish −1 in Rastrelliger sp. to 18.91 ± 2.74 particles fish −1 in Tenualosa ilisha , while mass‐normalized concentration ranged from 0.0464 to 0.2977 particles g − 1 . Paired gut–gill comparisons were evaluated using a Shapiro–Wilk‐dependent approach: Wilcoxon signed‐rank tests were applied to six species with non‐normal paired differences, and paired‐samples t ‐tests were applied to Polynemus paradiseus and T. ilisha , whose paired differences were compatible with normality. All eight tissue comparisons were significant at p < 0.001. Gut abundance exceeded gill abundance in six species, whereas Rastrelliger sp. and T. ilisha exhibited gill‐dominant burdens. Fibres were the dominant morphotype in six species, while paint‐like particles were prominent in Rastrelliger sp. and T. ilisha . Particles measuring 20–50 µm represented a substantial proportion of the recovered particles. ATR–FTIR analysis assigned 238 of 270 analysed particles (88.1%) to polyethylene terephthalate, polyethylene, polypropylene, polystyrene or polyamide/nylon. Under a hypothetical sole‐species consumption scenario based on a fish intake rate of 123 g person − 1 day − 1 , estimated daily intake ranged from 5.71 to 36.62 particles person − 1 day − 1 , and body‐weight‐normalized intake ranged from 0.0990 to 0.6347 particles kg − 1 day − 1 . The Exposure Risk Index ranged from 1.00 to 6.41 and was used only as a relative within‐study ranking; it is not a validated toxicological, regulatory or human‐health threshold.
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