Global human usage of plastic has resulted in serious environmental contamination, including the discharge of microplastics. The air, water, soil, food, and even human organs have been reported to contain these tiny plastic particles. Microplastics are a serious health and environmental issue, as they can have adverse effects on human health and ecosystems.
Now a new study challenges a 2019 World Health Organization report that microplastics in drinking water are harmless after confirming their presence in kidney, urine and bladder cancer samples.
The scoping review led by researchers from Bond University looked at 18 previous studies to assess the presence of microplastics and even smaller nanoplastics in the urinary tract.
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They found the contaminants were in 54 percent of urine samples, 70 percent of kidney samples and 68 percent of bladder cancer cases.
The review concluded that the plastic debris harmed human urinary tract cells by causing toxicity and inflammation, reducing cell survival. They also disrupt MAPK (mitogen-activated protein kinase) signalling, a process that helps cells respond to growth signals and stress.
“This scoping review highlights the rapidly emerging threat of microplastic contamination within the human urinary tract, challenging the World Health Organization's assertion that microplastics pose no risk to public health,” the authors wrote.
“The documented cytotoxic effects of microplastics, alongside their ability to induce inflammation, reduce cell viability and disrupt signalling pathways, raise significant public health concerns relating to bladder cancer, chronic kidney disease, chronic urinary tract infections and incontinence.
“As a result, this study emphasises the pressing need for further research and policy development to address the challenges surrounding microplastic contamination.”
Plastics have pervaded all aspects of society since their widespread adoption in the mid-20th century.
About 368 million tonnes of plastic were produced in 2019 and that is expected to double by 2039.
This has resulted in the accumulation of miniscule fragments which have found their way into all aspects of the environment.
The researchers were particularly interested in microplastics' effects on the urinary tract because an estimated 404.61 million urinary tract infections occurred in 2019 alone, resulting in more than 236,000 deaths.
