Plastic Damages Human Brain Cells, Finds a Study
A new study has compared the volume of micro-plastics that people consume through water, revealing the potential damage it does
With the growing usage of plastic, our so-called “green planet” is soon going to turn into a “plastic-planet”. Earlier, the invention of plastic was considered to be a solution to sustain natural resources on the earth, but contrarily, the very creation has now sabotaged its sole purpose. Astoundingly, a recent study has discovered that plastic damages human brain cells.
Plastics are broadly used to serve numerous purposes but this non-biodegradable material is also very well-known for causing adverse impacts on the environment. It takes several years (or even decades) for plastic to decompose and most of the times, they are not all degradable. Plastic not only harms the environment but it is also responsible for causing some health-related problems among humans, too.
Image: University of York
According to a latest discovery, the quantity of plastic to which we are exposed can potentially has some toxic effects, impacting human cells. Marine creatures have been consuming micro-plastics because of the oceanic waste and considerably, it does come into the food chain.
The latest study, led by scientists at the Hull York Medical School, is described as the first of its kind as it reveals that micro-plastics are capable of declustering the human lung cells and it might harm the brain cells.
Lead author and PHD student at Hull York Medical School, Evangelos Danopoulos said;
This is the first-time scientists have attempted to quantify the effects of the levels of micro-plastics on human cells using a statistical analysis of the available published studies. What we have found is that in toxicology tests, we are seeing reactions including cell death and allergic reactions as potential effects of ingesting or inhaling high levels of micro-plastics.
The concentration found in stool tests determines the rate at which we are consuming plastics. Its quantity also leads to oxidative stress, causing cell or tissue damage. The way we have been exploiting our planet has caused various species to go extinct, similarly, the time is not far where we might vanish ourselves from the face of the earth.
Via: University of York
