A new study suggests people living in coastal communities with higher concentrations of microplastics may face increased risks of type 2 diabetes, stroke and coronary artery disease.
The peer-reviewed study was published Wednesday in the Journal of the American Heart Association.
It's one of the first large-scale studies to show that living near waters polluted with microplastics could be linked to chronic health conditions, the researchers of the study said.
Experts looked at microplastic measurements collected between 2015 and 2020, focusing on U.S. counties within 200 miles of the Pacific Ocean, Atlantic Ocean and the Gulf of Mexico, also known as the Gulf of America. Then, they compared disease prevalence in those regions while accounting for risk factors like age, access to medical care and socioeconomic status.
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The findings revealed concerning health correlations: People in areas with deeper concentrations of microplastics had an 18% higher risk of Type 2 diabetes, a 9% higher risk of stroke and a 7% higher risk of coronary artery disease.
The study also discovered that people living on the Gulf and Atlantic coasts have a higher presence of Type 2 diabetes, coronary artery disease and stroke compared to those on the Pacific coast.
"Plastic pollution is not just an environmental issue – it may also be a public health issue,” said Dr. Sarju Ganatra, M.D., senior author of the study. "While this study measured pollution in ocean water, pollution isn’t limited to the sea. Microplastics are everywhere: in drinking water, in the food we eat, especially seafood, and even in the air we breathe."
Researchers said while their findings were compelling, more research about how microplastics enter and impact the body need to be conducted.
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