Migration of Nanoplastics into Water
In the month of January, 2024 researchers from Columbia University analyzed samples from three brands of bottled water using laser-powered microscopes and discovered that a liter contained 110,000 to 400,000 pieces of nanoplastics per liter. Nanoplastics are 1,000th the average width of a human hair and are so infinitesimally small that they can migrate through the tissues of the digestive tract or lungs into the bloodstream and distribute potentially harmful synthetic chemicals throughout the body and into cells.
A 2018 research discovered an average of 325 microplastics in a litre of bottled water. However, due to a lack of appropriate methods and equipment, the level of nanoplastics in bottled water and their potential toxicity couldn’t be ascertained all these whiles.
Globally, plastic production is approaching 400 million metric tons annually, with over 30 million tons discarded into water bodies or landfills. So are we gulping down plastics everyday? Where miniscule fragments coming from, if not from the bottled water itself? How can we mitigate the presence of nanoplastics in bottled water? The answer lies in a multifaceted approach in addressing the nanoplastic issue. It is crucial to reduce plastic waste at the source which can be achieved through better waste management practices, raising awareness about plastic pollution, and promoting the use of biodegradable materials. There are few effective, sustainable solutions which we can adopt to reduce plastic exposure in our lives, such as stop eating food in plastic containers or stop reusing plastic bottles of soft drinks. We can use copper bottles, stainless steel, or glass bottles instead of drinking water from plastic bottles. Escaping microplastics and nanoplastics entirely is impossible but with these small changes in our lives we can preserve our ecosystem and safeguard human health.