What can microplastics do to the human body?
It\u2019s hard to imagine a world without plastic now \u2013 plastic exists in almost every sphere of our life. Microplastics, the tiny toxic particles that plastics shed and that are scattered across the environment have been found everywhere \u2013 from clouds, to the bottom of the ocean, in Antarctica and even in our bodies \u2013 we swallow them and we breathe them in. In a recent study published in The New England Journal of Medicine however, researchers found microplastics and nanoplastics \u2013 which are even smaller particles \u2013 inside our innermost organ -- in the fatty deposits or plaques that can accumulate in the blood vessels of the heart. They also found that those with these plastics in their blood vessels had a greater risk of experiencing heart attacks, strokes or death. However, they have cautioned this was only a link and not proof that plastics led to bad health \u2013 much more research is needed to establish how plastics really affect our health.\nThe study comes at a time when the world and India is attempting to ban plastic and encourage people towards sustainable, plastic-free options \u2013 but this is happening very slowly, as we can see all around us, in daily life and in the massive landfills in our city.\nWhat can micro and nanoplastics do to the human body? What is the direction research into this must take? And how can we minimise our exposure to plastic pollution?\nGuest: Dr Sanjay Rajagopalan, one of the authors of the study and Chief, Cardiovascular Medicine and Chief Academic and Scientific Officer at University Hospitals, Harrington Heart & Vascular Institute, Ohio, United States\nHost: Zubeda Hamid