Tiny plastic fragments have been found in human brains, lungs, livers, kidneys, placentas, testicles, knee and elbow joints, and even blood vessels and bone marrow, highlighting the huge problem of plastic pollution. Now, a new study has some microplastics researchers demanding "a global emergency" be declared in response. The research posted online by the National Institutes of Health looked at livers, kidneys, and brains collected from bodies autopsied in 2016 and 2024. Microplastics or smaller fragments known as nanoplastics were found in every single organ. But the study describes the brain as "one of the most plastic-polluted tissues yet sampled," per the Guardian.
"The 91 brain samples contained on average about 10 to 20 times more than the other organs," according to the outlet. "All organs exhibited significant increases from 2016 to 2024," per the pre-print study now undergoing peer review. And it notes the two dozen brain samples collected in 2024 contained 0.5% plastic by weight. "It's pretty alarming," says lead author Matthew Campen, a toxicologist at the University of New Mexico. "There's much more plastic in our brains than I ever would have imagined or been comfortable with." Sedat Gündogdu, a microplastics researcher at Turkey's Cukurova University, says the results show "it is now imperative to declare a global emergency" to deal with plastic pollution.
Dr. Marcus Garcia, a microplastics researcher at the University of New Mexico, says "humans consume about five grams of microplastics per week, the equivalent of a credit card," per the Toronto Star. With "almost everything that we consume, there's some type of microplastics present." Animal studies have linked microplastics to cancers, immune system disruptions, impaired learning and memory, and fertility problems. Researchers are just beginning to explore how microplastics affect the human body, but early research suggests increased risks of cardiovascular disease. As more plastic is produced and more breaks down in landfills, researchers say the problem will get worse without intervention. (More microplastics stories.)
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