Thanks for sharing this!

I have been working on this, too. Replaced all plastic utensils with wood (like spoons) or metal. Got rid of plastic water bottles and plastic storage containers in the kitchen (although the covers have plastic around the edges!). And I saw the same thing about tea bags, of course just when I switched from coffee to tea every morning. And we also have a brand new Kitchen Aid electric kettle, which has plastic parts but I think mostly in the cover. Sigh…apparently washing machines have microplastics too.

Oh, and maybe TMI but I also bought all cotton undies too. 🫢

I'm more or less aligned with 3katz here. But I do feel so sorry for my kids with their young children. My head would be spinning trying to limit the amount of toxic items around. I did toss 2 black plastic spatulas that were ancient but replaced them with silicone ones that can take high temperature. As 3katz said - at my age I'm probably already toxic.

When I buy pajamas or underwear I always buy 100% cotton which can be hard to find in PJ's. so many of them are now a blend. But I buy cotton for the breathability not necessarily because they're less toxic since they've all received some kind of finishing process or dye.

I no longer feel like I'm smart enough to know what the right thing to do is....

Didn't I just read somewhere in the last few weeks that "they" believe most adults have a teaspoon of microplastics already in our brains? Isn't that a nice thought!

I drink a lot of hot tea. I enjoy a glass or 3 of red wine a week. That causes cancer now too, in case you haven't heard.

For decades, I stored all kinds of food in contact with plastic. I no longer do that, but how much damage is done? You're talking to someone who grew up drinking Capri Sun, and various drinks out of plastic bottles galore, drank straight from the garden hose all summer long.

The bad news feels relentless sometimes, and I just never really know if I'm totally screwed already. Here I thought because I eat reasonably healthy, am not horribly overweight, never smoked, and up until the last few years I also got enough exercise I should be ok. Now I find out red wine and hot tea will be the death of me. Seems about right. :-)

I no longer feel like I'm smart enough to know what the right thing to do is....

This

Didn't I just read somewhere in the last few weeks that "they" believe most adults have a teaspoon of microplastics already in our brains?

And sometimes worms, too

Agree w @3katz4me and @maire_cate.

But my approach is, without going crazy, why not take precautions?

Is there microplastic in bloomers? This I did not know. That seems like a bad idea, because

For those of us using hair color: Hair Dye - Cancer Risk

Arapaho, isaw that story about hair dyes. Its worrisome, not so much for me, the client, as for my hairdresser. I think the risk might be greater now that many hairdressers are setting up in small ”pods” rather than large salons. I am guessing the gasses ( or whatever it is) is more highly concentrated in a small space.

As for other recently discovered risks, at my age I figure the damage is done or I dont have enough years left to accumulate the harm.

^^^What MTN said, "without going crazy, why not take precautions?' Yes, that really resonates for me. 3katz, I believe I'm older than you but If I were to live into very old age l would prefer having a shot at a healthier more productive enjoyable time of it than not, if I can help it. However I do absolutely agree with you about the impact of stress, anxiety and negative thinking, and in fact focus on that in my practice. I had to laugh, Ally De, about drinking out the garden hose which was something we did all the time when I was a kid! Yikes!

When the cost of aluminum goes up, Coca Cola will be using more plastic than it is currently.

I hear you, Ded. With all the recalls, I'm wondering if the food may kill me first!

I think Ive had several gallons of red dye no. 3 over my lifetime. However, i’d try to keep my kids from consuming it.

Thinking of everything that has gone down my drains, and all the other drains? I’d never count it all. Shampoo, conditioner, liquid soap, soap, SOS pads (I watched some little bits of steel wool make their way down the drain), detergent, Dawn, ammonia,Pine-Sol, not to mention what has gone on the lawn, ice melt, And multiply that by municial, commercial, industrial… we are not good stewards of our planet. The plastics are only part of the problem.

DD and DSIL are trying to rid their house of plastics, fragrances (hormone disrupters), and artificial food colors, among other things. I support them 100%, but like others up-thread, at my age, it is probably futile.

Lucky for me, my mother hated plastic anything with a purple passion. She also would not buy goods from foreign countries that she did not think adhered to her standards of safety.

As an arts & crafts teacher, I now feel some serious concern when using glitter - especially when cleaning up, when it goes in the trash or down the drain. It's a huge source of microplastics. I have a lot - AND kids love it. We just used some for our Valentines crafts as well 😔

Carole, I had no idea, that's interesting. I have a couple large containers from at least 35 or 40 years ago. Was glitter always plastic?

I also feel the lifetime exposure has mostly occurred. I did get some Pyrex containers for my lunches to avoid using more plastic. I don’t really heat them since I am taking salads most days. I think the microplastics exposure and increase in obesity needs to be explored further. Of course, obesity has many causes, and it’s not just one thing.

I think one thing we can try to reduce our exposure is fine particle pollution (PM2.5) from poor air quality, wildfires, being close to traffic (exhaust, brake dust, tires all release fine particles). These can diffuse into the bloodstream and cause health problems like asthma attacks, acute kidney problems, arterial plaque rupture that can cause cardiovascular events. It really hit me when I was in China and the air quality index was over 400!