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People with IBD have more Microplastics in their Feces

Higher numbers of microplastics of various shapes, such as sheets (left) and fibers (right) were found in the feces of people with IBD than in healthy controls.
Credit: Adapted from Environmental Science & Technology 2021, DOI: 10.1021/acs.est.1c03924

Microplastics — tiny pieces of plastic less than 5 mm in length — are everywhere, from bottled water to food to air. According to recent estimates, people consume tens of thousands of these particles each year, with unknown health consequences. Now, researchers reporting in ACS’ Environmental Science & Technology found that people with inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) have more microplastics in their feces than healthy controls, suggesting that the fragments could be related to the disease process.

The prevalence of IBD, which includes ...

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