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Drinking Boiled Tap Water Reduces Human Intake of Nanoplastics and Microplastics
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A study found that simply boiling tap water can remove at least 80% of nano- and microplastics by causing them to become trapped in calcium carbonate (limescite) deposits that naturally form during boiling. This traditional practice, common in parts of Asia, offers a free and easy way for people to significantly reduce the amount of plastic particles they consume through drinking water.
Tap water nano/microplastics (NMPs) escaping from centralized water treatment systems are of increasing global concern, because they pose potential health risk to humans via water consumption. Drinking boiled water, an ancient tradition in some Asian countries, is supposedly beneficial for human health, as boiling can remove some chemicals and most biological substances. However, it remains unclear whether boiling is effective in removing NMPs in tap water. Herein we present evidence that polystyrene, polyethylene, and polypropylene NMPs can coprecipitate with calcium carbonate (CaCO3) incrustants in tap water upon boiling. Boiling hard water (>120 mg L–1 of CaCO3) can remove at least 80% of polystyrene, polyethylene, and polypropylene NMPs size between 0.1 and 150 μm. Elevated temperatures promote CaCO3 nucleation on NMPs, resulting in the encapsulation and aggregation of NMPs within CaCO3 incrustants. This simple boiling-water strategy can “decontaminate” NMPs from household tap water and has the potential for harmlessly alleviating human intake of NMPs through water consumption.
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Response to Comment on “Drinking Boiled Tap Water Reduces Human Intake of Nanoplastics and Microplastics”
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Researchers responded to scientific commentary on their earlier finding that boiling tap water can reduce nanoplastic and microplastic content in drinking water. They addressed methodological questions and reaffirmed that the calcium carbonate deposits formed during boiling can encapsulate and help remove plastic particles. The study supports the idea that a simple household practice like boiling water may offer a partial approach to reducing microplastic intake from tap water.
ACS reports boiling tap water reduces microplastics and a new vibrant blue pottery pigment with less cobalt
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Researchers at ACS reported that boiling tap water causes nano- and microplastics to become trapped within limescale (calcium carbonate) precipitates that form during heating, which can then be removed by simple filtration. This finding suggests that a simple, low-cost household intervention may reduce human exposure to waterborne micro- and nanoplastics.
Comment on “Drinking Boiled Tap Water Reduces Human Intake of Nanoplastics and Microplastics”
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A commentary raises methodological concerns about a previously published study claiming that boiling tap water significantly reduces nanoplastic and microplastic intake, questioning the validity of the quantification approach used.
Boiling Away Emerging Pollutants: Ancient Wisdom for Modern Drinking Water Safety
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Turns out that old-school trick of boiling your water can actually tackle some sneaky modern threats, according to this review of existing research: it helps remove microplastics (by trapping them in the mineral scale that forms), breaks down genetic material from antibiotic-resistant bacteria, and gets rid of certain harmful chemical byproducts. It's not a perfect fix and works best when combined with other simple tools, but it's an encouraging reminder that a cheap, low-tech habit can meaningfully improve the safety of your drinking water.
Microplastics in potable water of a coastal city of Bangladesh: Efficacy of boiling as a point-of-use mitigation strategy
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Researchers quantified microplastic contamination across three domestic water sources in Khulna City, Bangladesh — pond, tap, and groundwater — finding MPs in all samples and demonstrating that boiling reduces concentrations by over 70%, with reduction efficiency strongly correlated with water hardness due to calcium carbonate co-precipitation trapping particles at the vessel bottom.
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