If the entire world population were to step on the scale, it would indicate around 300 million tons. Pretty overwhelming, right? Well, every year we produce the same amount of plastic waste. The problem with plastic is that it never completely disappears. Instead, it breaks down into smaller pieces, microplastics. Because these plastic particles are in products as well as their packaging, you are constantly swallowing and breathing them in. What's more, they pose major risks to your health. Discover potential hazards and actions to combat microplastics in packaging.

Microplastics is a collective term for particles of plastic with a maximum size of 5 millimeters. Particles smaller than 100 nanometers are called nanoplastics. You can distinguish two types of microplastics: primary and secondary. The first group includes small plastic particles deliberately produced and added to makeup, toothpaste or cleaning products. These particles have an abrasive effect and therefore a cleaning effect. Also, particles released from the wear and tear of your car tires and synthetic textiles are primary microplastics. Under the secondary heading are microplastics that are not intentionally manufactured. They come from plastic packaging, including bags and bottles, or fishing nets. In water, those plastic objects fragment into smaller pieces under the influence of sunlight, temperature, wave action or friction.

Microplastics are everywhere

In the late 1990s, Captain Charles Moore discovered an accumulation of plastic collected by ocean currents in a spot in the Pacific Ocean. A quarter century after the date, that pile is as big as Spain. Because of the pile of research that followed that discovery, our knowledge of plastic in the sea is most extensive. For example, we know that it is almost technically impossible to fish microplastics out of our seas and oceans. Barely 1% of the waste that ends up in the sea floats and can be captured. 94% ends up on the seafloor.

Nor do the highest mountain peaks, the Arctic and rural areas where there is no industry or human presence escape it. That's because water and air carry microplastics with them. Meanwhile, they are everywhere, including in the food on your plate, your drinking water and the air you breathe. A gram of clam meat, for example, contains between 0.13 and 2.45 plastic particles. In turn, a plastic pyramid-shaped tea bag leaves 11.6 billion particles of microplastic and 3.1 billion particles of nanoplastic in a bag. So you are constantly ingesting particles of plastic through consumption and inhalation.

Microplastics from drinks and food or the packaging around them?

The bizarre reality is that you eat a credit card every year. But are beverage and food products containing plastic particles? Or are they "contaminated" by packaging, which accounts for 40 percent of plastic use in Europe? It could be both. The best-known sources of such contamination are plastic water and soft drink bottles. Those who drink only water from plastic bottles ingest about 90,000 particles of microplastic every year. Plastic cups and food containers used for delivery and takeout meals contribute equally to the amount of microplastics that enter your body. Many of those particles are created in the production of those containers and remain in them. Canned food and drinks are also at risk of contamination. There is a thin layer of plastic on the inside, which is in direct contact with the contents.

In Europe, we use 40% of plastic for packaging material.

What are the effects of microplastics on your health?

The ubiquity, large quantities and persistent exposure to microplastics are ringing alarm bells loudly. And then comes the key question: how do these plastic particles affect your health? Unfortunately, that remains unclear and requires more research. What scientists do agree on are the three ways plastic particles harm your health:

1. The microplastics in your body from eating, drinking and inhaling them can make you sick
2. Plastic carries chemicals linked to hormone-sensitive cancers, infertility and disorders of brain development such as ADHD and autism
3. Plastic particles can attract disease-causing bacteria in the environment. If they end up in your body, they increase the risk of infection

An overview of potential health effects of your daily contact with harmful substances in plastic.

The number of studies taking those three ways under the microscope is growing. Although for now the majority are limited to animal experiments or testing with human tissue in culture dishes, results such as these are not very hopeful:

• Microplastics increase the risk of inflammatory reactions in your gut. Different sizes of microplastics can enter intestinal tissue and affect the "barrier integrity" of human tissue. Thus, they pave the way for bacteria that cause inflammatory reactions in that tissue.
• Micro- and nanoplastics can penetrate the barrier that protects your brain. In the short term, they don't do any major damage there, although they do affect the functioning of important enzymes. These are proteins that serve as auxiliary substances for all kinds of biochemical processes. Follow-up research focuses on the effects of long-term exposure.
• Plastic chemicals may contribute to overweight and obesity. A recent study shows that one-third of the chemicals in plastic containers, such as yogurt containers and drinking bottles, cause the development and growth of fat cells.

Go on plastic diet: avoid packaging, at home and at work

As a consumer, you generally have more influence on packaging than on the composition of products. By the way, don't forget that companies, in addition to households, are a major source of packaging waste. That party also runs into the disadvantages of disposable packaging. Then the question arises: how can you avoid plastic packaging at home and (soon again) at work? These plastic diet tips, inspired by "May Plastic Free," are something you can apply at home for beverage and food packaging, while your employer can use them at the office:

1. Don't buy plastic water or soda bottles, instead opt for reusable drinking bottles. Switch to tap water and, if you are a fan of something fresh, add a flavour concentrate to it. This is often healthier (read: contains less sugar) than traditional sodas. The Dripl Refill Point is the ideal solution for that.
   
   
2. Avoid beverage and food cans. For beverage cans, see tip 1. Instead of food cans, buy fresh and in bulk as much as possible. Storage boxes are handy for that.
   
   
3. When ordering delivery or take-out meals, do not accept plastic cups, meal trays and cutlery. Ask for plastic-free alternatives or provide your own reusable boxes, bags and cutlery.
   
   
4. Keep out plastic wrap. Instead, invest in storage boxes for soup or salads and cloth towels for sandwiches.
   
   
5. Choose loose tea or maté. That option requires less packaging material, you can use more often and contains no plastic.
   
   
6. When you shop for food or drink in stores or from a supplier, opt for plastic-free solutions, such as cardboard packaging.
   
   
7. Don't be tempted by plastic bags, opt for reusable shopping bags or cardboard boxes.

Be part of the Refillution

With Dripl's Refill Point, a sustainable drink dispenser, you keep plastic containers far out of the picture. The principle is simple: you put down your glass or reusable bottle and select flat or sparkling water. If you want, you add a flavour concentrate. Are you and your company ready for Refillution?