We can't find the internet
Attempting to reconnect
Something went wrong!
Hang in there while we get back on track
Microplastics and nanoplastics in the human diet
AI summary Read the abstract
Researchers reviewed how microplastics and nanoplastics enter the human body through food and drink, finding that the tiniest particles likely penetrate the gut lining and enter tissues in ways similar to drug-delivery nanoparticles. This raises significant concerns about long-term health effects from everyday dietary exposure to plastic contamination.
Human exposure to environmental microplastics and nanoplastics via oral ingestion is a topic of public health and food safety concern. In this Review, the physicochemical properties of drug-delivery nanoparticles were considered to evaluate the biological plausibility of environmental nanoplastics overcoming biological-selective barriers. Physicochemical characteristics probably have a key role in the interaction of nanoplastics with the mucus layer and the intestinal mucosal epithelium. Substantial gaps in experimental designs and analytical methodologies pose a major challenge to fully understanding nanoplastic uptake and should be prioritized for future research. Environmental nanoplastics and microplastics enter the human gut where they encounter biological-selective barriers; the plausibility of plastics crossing these barriers is reviewed based on an understanding of the physiochemical properties of drug-delivery nanoparticles.
More Papers Like This
Microplastics in Human Food Items
AI summary Read the abstract
Researchers documented the widespread presence of microplastics across the human food supply — found in seafood, salt, honey, beer, and tap water — highlighting that virtually no food category is free from plastic contamination and that daily dietary exposure is unavoidable.
Microplastics in Foods
AI summary Read the abstract
Researchers reviewed the sources, occurrence, and health implications of microplastic contamination across diverse food categories, tracing pathways from agricultural soils and processing facilities to the human dinner plate. The pervasiveness of microplastics in the food supply means dietary ingestion is a primary and daily human exposure route, underscoring the urgency of setting regulatory limits and improving food safety standards.
Deciphering potential implications of dietary microplastics for human health
AI summary Read the abstract
Researchers evaluated a World Health Organization report on dietary exposure to nano- and microplastics, concluding that while humans are clearly ingesting these particles through food and beverages, convincing evidence of adverse health effects remains elusive due to major detection and data gaps.
Human Consumption of Microplastics via Food Type and Habits: Recent Review
AI summary Read the abstract
This review documents microplastic contamination across the full food supply chain—from crop production and water pipes through processing, packaging, and home preparation—finding that both processed and unprocessed foods contain MPs, with infants and young children at greatest risk. Modifying household food preparation and consumption behaviors can meaningfully reduce daily MP ingestion, even though complete avoidance is currently impossible.
Human Exposure to Dietary Microplastics and Health Risk: A Comprehensive Review
AI summary Read the abstract
This comprehensive review examines human dietary exposure to microplastics through bottled water, seafood, packaged foods, and crops grown in plastic-mulched soils, cataloging toxicity mechanisms including immune disruption, gastrointestinal damage, and developmental cytotoxicity, with MPs shown to transfer via placenta and breast milk. The multi-pathway exposure evidence reviewed here highlights that microplastic ingestion is a universal human experience beginning before birth, with plausible health consequences that demand urgent investment in mechanistic in vivo research.
Research digests by email
When a large batch of papers lands in the Atlas, we read through it and send a short write-up of what stood out.