Plastics

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In Microplastics, a Reporter Sees the Big Picture

By Nina Agrawal 25/04/2025 The New York Times

As a health reporter covering chronic diseases for The New York Times, I often get ideas for articles from new medical research. And as someone who grew up near the ocean, I have long been aware of the vast amounts of plastic we as a society use and throw away — and the detrimental effects that such waste can have on the environment.

So in February, when I came across a study about the buildup of microplastics inside of human brains and other tissue, I was immediately curious.

In the study, researchers at the University of New Mexico described a novel way to identify and measure the amount of microplastics inside human bodies. They also showed that over time, as the amount of plastic in the environment has increased, so too has the level of microplastics in our brains.