Routine domestic activities could expose people to a cloud of plastic particles so small that they can be inhaled deep into the lungs, according to research seen exclusively by Sky News.
The study at the University of Portsmouth found a fitness workout on a synthetic carpet could result in up to 110 plastic fibres or fragments being breathed in every minute.
Folding clothes made from fabrics such as polyester, and even just sitting down on a foam-filled sofa, also produced a plume of microscopic particles in the surrounding air.
The researchers say the findings underline the urgency of talks by the United Nations this week to agree a global treaty to reduce plastic pollution.
Faye Couceiro, professor of environmental pollution at the university, who led the study, said the health consequences of microplastics in the body are still unknown.
But she’s already taking steps to reduce her exposure, including switching where possible to wood floors and fabrics made from natural fibres.
“I don’t think you need to go and rip up every piece of plastic in your house,” she said. “It’s not financially viable.
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“But I do think it’s of concern. If we are exposed every day for our whole lives and we live to 80, 90 years old, what does that mean?
“It’s not just a single event where we are exposed for a day or two. This is our whole lives that we are breathing them in. So what happens as they accumulate?”
The researchers used machines to filter the air in a room while volunteers carried out normal domestic activities. They then calculated the concentration of microplastic in the air and the number of pieces likely to be inhaled.
The results showed that folding laundry made from synthetic fabrics could lead to seven pieces of microplastic being inhaled per minute.
And sitting on a sofa could result in 10 particles being breathed in every minute.
But the plastic load from a workout was likely to be more than 10 times higher, partly because of the impact on the carpet, but also because of the higher breathing rate.
Professor Couceiro said some of the microplastic would be cleared from the lungs by mucus and coughing. But multiple studies have now found microplastics inside the body, including blood vessels, joints, organs and the brain.
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So far there is no direct evidence that plastic causes ill health, but it has been shown to damage cells and trigger inflammation.
Professor Couceiro said: “I can’t imagine any scenario in which we find out breathing plastic is good for us.
“We know that it can have negative implications at very high concentrations. What we don’t know is what concentration that would be in a home setting.
“If we want to get ahead of this curve and make sure that we stay below (risk) thresholds, we need to learn what they are as soon as possible.”
Microplastics are either fibres or fragments that have broken off larger objects.
Scientists estimate there are between 12.5 trillion and 125 trillion particles less than 5mm in size that have been washed into the world’s oceans, where they are consumed by marine organisms and passed up the food chain.
The United Nations Environment Programme says the current use of plastic is unsustainable.
Latest figures show 400 million tonnes of plastic are produced every year. That’s set to treble by 2050. Yet half of all plastic is used once and then thrown away.
The UN wants international agreement on a treaty to reduce plastic pollution. The last of five rounds of talks between countries have started in Busan, South Korea.
The treaty is likely to include moves to encourage more prudent use of plastic, and efforts to reuse or recycle it.
But the UK is among just over 40 countries that also want restrictions on production.
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Professor Steve Fletcher, director of the Revolution Plastics Institute at the University of Portsmouth, who is giving scientific advice to the talks, said cuts were essential.
“Plastic waste has very little value at the moment,” he said. “There’s no incentive to really manage it that carefully.
“If there’s less plastic entering the economy and a much stricter emphasis on reusing the plastic that we have, then that waste plastic has value and there are greater incentives to (use it).
“It’s about managing plastic, so it doesn’t become waste.
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However, countries that produce oil, the raw ingredient for plastic, are opposing cuts to production.
And the British Plastics Federation is also against any cap or tax on production, arguing a source of virgin plastic is needed for medical uses.
But Environment Secretary Steve Reed said: “For too long, plastic has littered our ocean and threatened our wildlife.
“We urgently need an ambitious international agreement to end plastic pollution by 2040 to promote a circular economy where we reduce waste and clean up our environment.”
