If your drinking water is typically bottled there’s a good chance you’re consuming microplastic particles with every drink, according to a new study. Looking at more than 250 water bottles sourced from eleven brands in nine different countries, the study revealed that Microplastic contamination was found in more than 90% of the samples tested.
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The study analyzed 259 bottles from 19 locations in nine countries across 11 different brands and found an average of 325 plastic particles for every liter of water being sold.
In one bottle of Nestlé Pure Life, concentrations were as high as 10,000 plastic pieces per litre of water. Of the 259 bottles tested, only 17 were free of plastics, according to the study.” – The Guardian
This is nearly twice the level of contamination discovered in the same group’s earlier study on the plastic contamination in tap water. The survey included Aquafina, Dasani, Evian, Nestlé and San Pellegrino brands.
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These microplastic particles are everywhere, found in our oceans, lakes, rivers, fish stomachs, and our stomachs. They can be traced back to our synthetic clothes, which contaminate our water systems every time they’re washed.
With the bottled water, Orb’s new study indicates contamination is in large part a result of plastic packaging and the process the bottling companies use.
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Most plastic ingested is likely to pass through a human body, but some could end up lodged in the gut, or traveling through the lymphatic system, according to this EFSA Panel on Contaminants in the Food Chain.
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“There’s so many unknowns here. That, combined with the highly likely population-wide exposure to this stuff—that’s probably the biggest story here. I think it’s something to be concerned about.” – Muncke
Source:
- Microplastics Found In Global Bottled Water – Orb Media
- Synthetic Polymer Contamination in Bottled Water – Freedonia
- Microplastic Waterbottle Orb Study – Time