Part 1: Health Issues Linked to Plastics
If you have been paying attention, I’m sure you know that plastics, especially single-use plastics, are a problem to the environment.
The production of single-use plastics, which are made from fossil fuels, emits vast amounts of greenhouse gases which add to global warming.
Food kept in plastic containers takes up the toxic Bisphenols A (BPA) and phthalates and gets into our bodies when we eat it. Research suggests that exposure to BPA may cause hormonal disruption, inflammatory responses associated with asthma and wheezing, neurological issues, cardiovascular disease, breast and prostate cancers, and other health issues. Researchers estimate that daily contact with phthalates may lead to early death for about 100,000 older Americans per year.
Plastics break down into microplastics, and end up in lungs, blood, and breast milk, where they certainly do not belong. Microplastics enter the water system, eventually ending up in food sources found in rivers and oceans. Fish are a major source of microplastics in the human diet.
Our attempts to reuse and recycle plastic do not work well in the case of kitchen plastics. Scientific studies show that recycling or reusing plastics causes more hazardous chemicals to be released.
In summary, plastics are a danger to the health of humans and our planet.
What Can Be Done?
In my opinion, it would be most effective to step up to this monumental, near-universal problem through legislation. In a second blog, I will discuss legislation that would help reduce the production and use of plastics and how we can support this. Finally, in a third blog, I will suggest some of the alternatives to plastic that individuals may wish to adopt in their own households. Part 2 and 3 will be published soon!
Stay tuned! -Ruth Sheets, FPUPC Earth Stewards Committee Member
Photo Credits: Smokestacks: ID 62022495 | Fossil Fuel Plant © Jzehnder1 | Dreamstime.comSpoonful of Plastic: ID 148118910 | Pollution © Olena Sakhnenko | Dreamstime.com
References for Part 1
earthday.org, https://www.earthday.org/fact-sheet-the-plastic-threat-to-human-health/, dated 14 March 2022.
Environmental and Energy Study Institute, eesi.org, https://www.eesi.org/files/FactSheet_Fossil_Fuel_Externalities_2021.pdf, accessed 29 June 2024.
Lee, Yongjia; Cho, Jaelim; Sohn, Jungwoo; and Kim, Changsoo. “Health Effects of Microplastic Exposures: Current Issues and Perspectives in South Korea”, published online 2023 Apr 20, viewable at https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC10151227/.
nyulangone.org, https://nyulangone.org/news/deaths-linked-hormone-disruptor-chemical-costs-billions-lost-us-productivity, accessed 29 June 2024.
Please leave a comment if you found this blog helpful or have questions. You can also email fpupcearthstewards@gmail.com. Thanks!
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