With two studies dropping just this week about the dangers of microplastics in the body, it's becoming ever more evident that if someone figures out how to remove them, they're going to make a killing.
A headline-grabbing study about microplastics being found in every human testicle the scientists examined was followed up by a less salacious one from China and Italy. In that paper, published in The Lancet, doctors described finding these minuscule pieces of harmful plastics in blood clots in hearts, brains, and legs, suggesting that not only are these particulates uber-prevalent but also that they may be really bad for us.
While more and more studies have reported finding microplastics basically everywhere scientists have looked within human bodies — not to mention the ocean, the air, and even in ancient ruins — there's been less research aiming to determine how they might affect our bodies. The two studies released this week, however, point to some clues: when found in testicles, microplastics may contribute to lowered sperm counts, and their presence in clots suggests they may be contributing to that coagulation.
Thus far, scientists haven't figured out any high-tech or pharmaceutical ways to remove microplastics from the body, though researchers did report in a study published earlier this year that boiling hard water can help microplastics clump together with mineral deposits and be filtered out of drinking water.
Interestingly, a small 2022 study from Australia did find that donating blood or plasma seems to reduce the level of perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances, known collectively as PFAS or "forever chemicals," from the bodies of firefighters who were exposed to them.
The logic from that study, which doesn't seem to have been replicated or expanded on yet, could potentially be applied to microplastics, which contain PFAS among other chemicals. Given that we keep ingesting them in the air we breathe, the water we drink, and the food we eat, however, it's hard to say whether that would be an effective method of getting rid of them.
But most likely, if there is a way to flush microplastics out of the body, it'll require a new breakthrough.
And whoever does? We reckon they're gonna make bank.
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