Study Finds Microplastics In the Brain

Eliseo Castillo explores the implications of already-present microplastics in our bodies.

WASHINGTON TIMES: “You probably already have microplastics in your brain, study finds”

A new study from the University of New Mexico has found that plastic particles are infiltrating human brains, raising concerns about health implications. The findings, detailed in a paper recently published in Environmental Health Perspectives, show that the tiny pollutants are breaching human biological barriers and accumulating in organs such as the kidneys, liver and the brain. “Over the past few decades, microplastics have been found in the ocean, in animals and plants, in tap water and bottled water,” said Eliseo Castillo, an associate professor in the Division of Gastroenterology & Hepatology in the University of New Mexico School of Medicine’s Department of Internal Medicine. READ MORE.

NEWSWEEK: “Warning as Microplastics Escape Gut to 'Infiltrate’ Brain”

In a study published in the journal Environmental Health Perspectives, Castillo and his colleagues exposed a group of mice to microplastics in their drinking water, equivalent to the concentrations we are exposed to on a daily basis. After four weeks, the team found that these microplastics had extended far beyond the mice's guts, infiltrating tissues in their livers, kidneys and even their brains. READ MORE.