Story at a glance
- Researchers analyzed six human placentas to search for the presence of microplastics.
- The found 12 microplastic fragments ranging from 5 to 10 micrometers in size in four of the placentas collected after the women gave birth.
- The study notes the particles could carry chemicals that cause long-term effects on human health, but more research on the issue is needed.
Several microplastic particles were found in the placentas of pregnant women for the first time, according to a new study.
Researchers behind the study published in the journal Environment International analyzed six human placentas from healthy pregnant women in Italy to search for the presence of microplastics.
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To ensure the placentas researchers were analyzing were not contaminated with plastics after leaving the body, a plastic-free environment was maintained over the course of the experiment. Obstetricians and midwives used cotton gloves to assist the women while in labor and only cotton towels were used to cover patients’s beds. The umbilical cord was clamped and cut with metal clippers and pathologists wore only cotton gloves.
Scientists found 12 microplastic fragments ranging from 5 to 10 micrometers in size in four of the placentas collected after the women gave birth. Researchers said all the particles that were analyzed were pigmented and may have originally come from packaging.
“Three were identified as stained polypropylene a thermoplastic polymer, while for the other nine it was possible to identify only the pigments, which were all used for man-made coatings, paints, adhesives, plasters, finger paints, polymers and cosmetics and personal care products,” researchers wrote in the study.
While the health effects of microplastics in the body is still largely unknown, the study notes the particles could carry chemicals that cause long-term effects on human health and more research on the issue is needed.
“Due to the crucial role of placenta in supporting the foetus development and in acting as an interface between the latter and the external environment, the presence of exogenous and potentially harmful (plastic) particles is a matter of great concern,” researchers wrote.
Microplastics are tiny plastic particles less than 5 millimeters long that originate from a variety of sources, including debris from large plastic items that have been broken down over time into smaller pieces. Other types of microplastics are manufactured for commercial use in cosmetics and other products.
Microplastic pollution has been found in the deepest parts of the ocean and are a threat to marine animals and birds that mistake microplastics for food and ingest them. Recently, microplastic fragments were found near the summit of Everest.
The study notes that over the last century, the global production of plastics has hit 320 million tons annually, with more than 40 percent used as single-use packaging.
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