The fact is that around the world, in just one minute, people are using millions of plastic bottles. Unfortunately, people do not have the habit of recycling, though in recent years awareness among the population is at a higher level for the harmful and polluting effect that plastic bottles create toward the environment.
The truth is that plastic waste is not only a problem by polluting the environment, but also affecting wildlife, overfilling ecosystems and obstructing the normal flow of water. So, the harmful effect is much more significant than you can imagine.
The conducted research has shown that the harmful effect on our health and the environment is much greater than we can imagine when we buy bottled water.
After this study was published, which emphasizes the general harmful effect on health by drinking water from plastic bottles, the World Health Organization has decided to investigate the disruption of overall health due to the ingestion of microplastics.
It has been found that approximately 275,000 metric tons of plastic bottles, and generally plastic, which has accumulated over the years, are blocking rivers and water channels throughout. Otherwise, surprisingly, something as small as microplastics (parts of plastic in decomposition), which has the size of small rice grains, can have so much harmful effect.
The study covered nine different countries, 11 companies, and water that came from 259 plastic bottles. The idea to conduct this useful study comes from the State University of New York at Fredonia, thanks to the wit of a group of scientists from the same University.
These scientists used a red color that stuck to pieces of microplastics, and this method helped them to detect and distinguish microplastics from the water.
On average, about 10.4 plastic particles were present in each liter of bottled water, according to the results. Astonishingly, even 10,000 plastic particles were present in one liter of bottled water from the Nestle Pure Life brand.
The results, published in an article on the Orb Media website show that one man ingests thousands of microplastics annually if he adheres to the recommended amount of water he needs to drink throughout the day. The study also showed that, although rarely represented, there is bottled water that does not contain plastic pieces at all.
Although we are aware of the harmful effect of our health by consuming such bottled water, there is still no accurate explanation as to exactly how microplastics affect the normal functioning of our body and our health.
There is an experiment involving fish that lived in water that contained a large number of microplastics, and according to the results obtained, it is assumed that the same effect on altering the normal amount of hormones and behavioral changes is occurring in humans.
Imagine, even 85% of tap water contains microplastics, and the same research conducted by the Orb Media organization has shown a staggering result that the amount of plastic pieces is twice as large as that in drinking water.
The introduction of a total ban on the use of plastic bottles may be the fastest solution to this problem, but the figures show that the dependence on the use of plastic bottles, and plastic in general, is too great for this problem to be solved so easily.
Via: Orb Media
Leave a Reply