Bottled Water: Plastic Micro Particles Leaking at Levels Over a Hundred Times the Estimate
According to a study in the latest issue of the Proceedings of the National Academy of Science, commercially available bottled water contains an average of 240,000 plastic particles per liter, which is a hundred times higher than previous studies. According to experts, these potential nanoplastics are harmful synthetic chemicals that can enter the bloodstream through the digestive tract and lungs and penetrate vital organs, threatening our health.
According to study co-author Beizhan Yan, associate professor of geochemistry at Columbia University, the study was the first to detect and classify plastic particles in water through dual-laser microscopy for the three most popular brands of bottled water in the United States. The most common plastic component was nylon, which is supposed to come from the plastic filters used to purify bottled water, followed by polyethylene terephthalate (PET), which is typically used to make bottled water bottles, and which leaches out when the bottles are extruded. This finding compares to a similar study in 2018, which had 10 to 100 times higher data.
The results of the Columbia University study confirm a long-standing recommendation by experts that drinking containers should be made of glass or stainless steel, which of course also applies to food and beverages served in plastic. The World Health Organization (WHO) published an evaluation report in 2019 stating that although there is currently insufficient evidence to link microplastics to human health, there is an urgent need for further research. Scientists also hope to use the results of this research to explore the presence of nanoplastics elsewhere. Although the level of plastic particles in tap water is known to be much lower, this is something the team would like to look into in the future.
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