Eating ready-to-eat foods may be convenient, but new research has pointed to a correlation between these types of meals and microplastics in the urine, The Healthy reported.
What's happening?
A group of researchers in Turkey followed a group of 48 healthy university students over a four-day period. During the first two days of the study, all participants were asked to follow a set of rules that would limit their plastic exposure. On days three and four, the participants split into three groups with different assigned diets, including either fresh, canned, or plastic-packaged ready-to-eat meals.
On day four, the researchers found that those who had eaten ready-to-eat meals had "significantly increased" levels of a microplastic called bisphenol A (BPA) in their urine compared to the other two groups.
Why is this study concerning?
BPA is a substance commonly used in plastic packaging and has been linked to high blood pressure, type 2 diabetes, and heart disease, according to the Mayo Clinic.
This builds on a body of research about the prevalence of microplastics in the human body. For instance, scientists at the University of New Mexico are sounding the alarm after discovering high concentrations of micro- and nanoplastics in human brains in post-mortem samples. Plus, these tiny plastics can be found just about everywhere in the body, including in human semen and placentas.
What's being done about microplastics?
Based on this study, eating fresh foods can help you avoid BPAs. The Healthy also suggested looking for microwavable meals that come in compostable containers.
Meanwhile, scientists are looking for ways to cut down on the number of microplastics in our environment. For instance, Esah Tea has released what it has called the world's first microplastic-free tea bag. Plus, researchers are finding new ways to take care of plastics before they break down in our environment and become microplastics — some solutions include hungry wax worms and fungus.
You can help by ditching plastics like food containers and plastic bags and replacing them with reusable options.
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