Scientists have discovered nanoplastics in bottled water – Kommersant

Chemists from Columbia University have found that a 1-liter bottle of water can contain about 240 thousand particles of nanoplastic. This was reported by Bloomberg citing a study published in the scientific journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS) on January 8.

Nanoplastics are plastic particles less than 1 micrometer long (µm; 1 mm contains 1 thousand microns). Previous studies only considered microplastics, those with fragments larger than 1 micron. A new study has found that the plastic content of bottled water may be 100 times higher than previously thought.

For the study, American scientists developed a new analysis method. Chemists conducted a study of 25 liter bottles of water from three American brands. 110–370 thousand particles were found in them, 90% of which are nanoplastics. At the same time, some of the particles could not be identified, which means there may be even more plastic.

It is noted that nanoplastic, due to its tiny size, can penetrate the blood and human cells, including through the placenta into the body of newborns.

Read more about plastic dumping in the ocean in the material “The largest garbage dump on the planet”.

Alexandra Goroshilova