nanoplastics

Sex toy tester Deon Black was about to try a new toy with his girlfriend when the device suddenly became very hot and burned him.He escaped with only a few scalded fingers but, after years of testing sex toys for work, the incident led him…

The actual number of each particle released by microwaving depended on multiple factors. (Representative Image: Shutterstock)The researchers suspect that kidney cells might be more susceptible to the particles than other cell types examined…

The fastest way to heat food and drink might also rank as the fastest route to ingesting massive quantities of minuscule plastic particles, says new research from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. Experiments have shown that microwaving…

It is well known that microplastics are a problem: They are tiny, barely visible plastic particles that can harm the environment, for example, if they are eaten by animals. However, it has been difficult to assess the effect of even smaller…

Plastics are ubiquitous in our society, found in packaging and bottles as well as making up more than 18% of solid waste in landfills. Many of these plastics also make their way into the oceans, where they take up to hundreds of years to…

What happens when people unknowingly eat, drink or inhale nearly invisible pieces of plastic? Although it's unclear what impact this really has on humans, researchers have now taken a step toward answering that question. In ACS'…

A new study from the University of Eastern Finland shows that lettuce can take up nanoplastics from the soil and transfer them into the food chain. The concern about plastic pollution has become widespread after it was realised that…

Large pieces of plastic can break down into nanosized particles that often find their way into the soil and water. Perhaps less well known is that they can also float in the air. It's unclear how nanoplastics impact human health, but animal…

The smaller plastic particles are, the more easily they can be taken up by cells. In addition, the shape, surface and chemical properties play an important role in answering the question of how the particles could affect human tissue. This…

Five grams of plastic particles on average enter the human gastrointestinal tract per person per week. This is roughly equivalent to the weight of a credit card. Whether ingested micro- and nanoplastics pose a health risk is being…