In the nearly sixty years since that line was uttered by Dustin Hoffman in the movie The Graduate, plastics have spread far and wide across the surface of the earth. They, or their breakdown products, are present in samples collected from the deepest oceans, on mountain tops, in air and clouds, our homes, our food, and our bodies, as well as in plants and animals around the world. 

---

Health concerns over plastic aren’t limited to the bottle, wrap, or bag that food or beverages come in. Our exposure to plastic and associated chemicals can take several routes:

• First: thousands of chemicals like plasticizers, pigments, and UV stabilizers are added to plastics and can leach into your food and beverages. Very few of these have been sufficiently tested for safety.¹
• Second: plastics can break into small particles, including micro- (< 5 mm) and nano- (< 100 nm) particles (MPs and NPs, respectively). 
  • Packaging and storage containers can shed these particles directly into our food. Plants and animals can take up these tiny particles, leading to contamination of fruits, veggies, meat, poultry, and fish that we then consume.
• • Industrialized food processing using plastic equipment can be a source of plastic particles to food.
• Third: plastics provide an excellent surface for bioaccumulative pollutants to adsorb to in the environment and then contaminate plants and animals that consume them.

Why are we concerned? Because there are many health issues associated with plastics and their associated chemicals and particles:

• Plasticizers and other additives have been linked to increased risk for miscarriage and premature birth, endocrine disruption, male reproductive defects and infertility, neurodevelopmental disorders, obesity, cardiovascular disease, renal disease, and cancer, among others.¹
• Micro and nano plastic particles have been detected in our blood and breastmilk.^2,3 They have also been measured in organs, including the placenta,⁴ the brains of mice,⁵ and preliminary studies show the presence of MPs in testis of humans and dogs, which were negatively correlated with sperm count and testis weight.⁶ MPs have been detected in arterial plaque and blood clots; patients with higher levels were found to be at higher risk of cardiovascular events.^7,8

---

I will be covering sources in more detail in the future but here are things you can do to reduce plastic in your food and beverages in the meantime. 

Food

• Instead of using plastic bags to buy produce and bulk items like rice and beans, bring reusable cloth bags or use paper bags provided by some grocery stores these days. Also avoid plastic-wrapped produce, like peppers, tomatoes, potatoes, and fruit instead of loose (e.g. free range).Instead of using plastic bags to buy produce and bulk items like rice and beans, bring reusable cloth bags or use paper bags provided by some grocery stores these days. Also avoid plastic-wrapped produce, like peppers, tomatoes, potatoes, and fruit instead of loose (e.g. free range).
• If you’re a do-it-yourselfer, go to Anne-Marie Bonneau’s website for information on how to make your own reusable bags. If you must buy foods in plastic bags, transfer to glass or stainless-steel containers when you get home to minimize further shedding of microplastics from the bag into your food.Minimize buying ultra-processed foods (UPFs), which are packaged in single use plastic and likely to have more contact with plastic equipment as they are produced.
• Bring reusable glass or stainless-steel containers for leftovers when you eat out.

Beverages

• Avoid beverages, including water, in plastic bottles. Buy beverages in glass bottles, when available and use glass or stainless-steel bottles when traveling
• Drink filtered tap water (either refrigerator or cartridge filters, preferably with an [NSF-certified filter]).
• Similarly, minimize buying beverages in aluminum cans, which have inner coatings that may leach endocrine disrupting chemicals.⁹Bring your own travel mug (ceramic or stainless steel) to get coffee and skip plastic-coated disposable cups and lids.
• Use a stainless-steel tea ball and loose-leaf tea. If the tea is packed in plastic, transfer to a glass jar to minimize shedding of microplastics from the bag.

Cooking, Storage, & Cleaning

• Collect glass jars (PB, jams, sauces) to store food in. If you don’t have any, buy canning jars to get started.
• Do not cook food in plastic. 
• Use Pyrex, stainless-steel, or cast-iron pans and pots to cook in. Make sure any nonstick pans are free of ALL fluorinated chemicals, not just PFOA and PFOS. You can also microwave food in dishes covered with a plate.
• Store leftovers in glass containers (e.g. Pyrex) or in a ceramic bowl topped with a small plate.
• Transfer the Tupperware and other plastic containers to the garage to store nails and odds and ends but get it out of the kitchen.
• Don’t put plastic in the dishwasher and skip plastic-coated dishwasher soap pods, which can shed microplastics. Either buy pellets or powder in cardboard boxes.
• Use bamboo or wood cutting boards instead of plastic. Have two boards, one for ready to eat foods (e.g. fruit) and one for foods you’ll cook, like raw meat, fish, and poultry.

This can be overwhelming if you’re just getting started, so I recommend trying one or two of these tips at a time. I also recommend subscribing to Anne Marie Bonneau’s newsletter or following her on social media @ZeroWasteChef. She’s an excellent resource for how to break up with plastic.

Though this blog is about toxic chemicals in our diets, I’ll add a quick note about removing other sources of plastic from your home. Clothes made from synthetic fabrics, as well as other household plastics are a major source for inhaled MPs (I’m just getting started on going through my own closet.) It helps to vacuum frequently with HEPA filters to lower levels in your house.

Best wishes and let me know if you have any questions.

Laurel Standley, Ph.D.

www.laureljstandley.com

References

1. Landrigan, P. J. et al., 2023. The Minderoo-Monaco Commission on Plastics and Human Health. Annals of Global Health, 89:1-215.
2. Leslie, H. A. et al. 2022. Discovery and quantification of plastic particle pollution in human blood. Environ. Intern. 163:107199.
3. Ragusa, A. et al. 2022. Raman microspectroscopy detection and characterization of microplastics in human breastmilk. Polymers. 14:2700.
4. Ragusa, A. et al. 2021. Plasticenta: First evidence of microplastics in human placenta. Environ. Internat. 146:106274.
5. Kopatz, V. et al. 2023. Micro- and nanoplastics breach the blood-brain barrier (BBB): Biomolecular corona’s role revealed. Nanomaterials. 13:1404.
6. Hu, C. J. 2024. Microplastic presence in dog and human testis and its potential association with sperm count and weights of testis and epididymis. Toxicol. Sci. 
7. Marfella, R. et al. 2024. Microplastics and nanoplastics in atheromas and cardiovascular events. N. Engl. J. Med.390:900-910.
8. Want, T. et al. 2024. Multimodal detection and analysis of microplastics in human thrombi from multiple anatomically distinct sites. eBioMedicine. 103:105118.
9. Lestido-Cardama, A. et al. 2022. Food and beverage can coatings: A review on chemical analysis, migration, and risk assessment. Compr. Rev. in Food Sci. and Food Safety. 21:3558-3611.