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Reply for comment on “Exposure to microplastics (<10 μm) associated to plastic bottles mineral water consumption: The first quantitative study by Zuccarello et al. [Water Research 157 (2019) 365–371]”
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This paper responds to methodological critiques of a study measuring microplastic exposure from plastic bottled mineral water, defending the analytical approach and the use of Principal Component Analysis to estimate estimated daily intake of sub-10 μm microplastic particles.
Microplastics (MPs) are a threat to both the environment and human health. In the absence of an official method that would allow the analysis of all MPs with diameters less than 10 μm, it was not possible to estimate the exact exposure to these contaminants, yet. In the last years, few studies are available in literature with the first data concerning the concentrations of MPs on bottle mineral waters. Zuccarello et al. (2019) carried out an exposure assessment study where a high value of EDI (Estimated Daily Intake) has been reported. This rebuttal letter aims to reply to the comments of Oßmann et al. (2018) on the article of Zuccarello et al. (2019) about the new analytical method and both the use and the interpretation of Principal Component Analysis.
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Comment on "exposure to microplastics (<10 μm) associated to plastic bottles mineral water consumption: The first quantitative study by Zuccarello et al. [Water Research 157 (2019) 365–371]"
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This commentary critiques a previously published study on microplastics in bottled mineral water, arguing that questionable analytical methods and lack of rigorous contamination controls undermine the study's conclusions and that media amplification of such flawed findings distorts public understanding of microplastic exposure.
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