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Microbeads in personal care products sold in Pakistan: extraction, quantification, characterization, and buoyancy analysis
Summary
Analysis of twelve personal care products sold in Pakistan — including face washes and scrubs — found plastic microbeads in all of them, ranging from ethylene-vinyl acetate to polyethylene and PET, with most particles sinking in water and therefore likely to settle in aquatic sediments after rinsing. This study underscores the need for stronger regulation of microbead-containing cosmetics in markets where bans have not yet been introduced.
Microbeads used in personal care products (PCPs) as an exfoliating agent or as a sorbent phase for delivering active ingredients are the most common sources of microplastics. The release of these plastic microbeads into aquatic environments has raised significant concerns due to their direct availability for ingestion by organisms upon entering the recipient waters. In this study, twelve personal care products (PCPs; 5 face washes and 7 scrubs) were analyzed for microbead content, size, polymer type, and buoyant behavior. Among the face washes, the highest microbead content (i.e., 11 ± 1.2 mg/g) was found in Neutrogena (NS), while the lowest was found in Nivea (NI) with 0.33 ± 0 mg/g. In case of scrubs, Cool and Cool (CL) contained a higher concentration of microbeads (i.e., 57.08±14.15 mg/g) and a lower concentration was found in Yong Chin (YC) (i.e., 10.5±1.5 mg/g). The sizes of microbeads ranged from 3.14 ± 0 to 747 ± 313 μm, and most of the isolated microbeads showed negative buoyant behavior in both freshwater and seawater. The FTIR spectra showed that the microbeads were mainly composed of ethyl-vinyl acetate (66.66%), high-density polyethylene (16.66%), polyethylene terephthalate (8.3%), and nitrile (8.3%). The presence of plastic microbeads in PCPs highlights the need to regulate their use as an exfoliating agent and to raise public awareness to prevent the discharge of these persistent and potentially harmful elements into the environment.