© Getty Images

Microplastic hype -

In March 2022, scientists published a study confirming they had found microplastics in human blood for the first time ever.

© Getty Images

The statistics -

The study was done on a small scale–only 22 people were tested–but it found that 80% of participants had blood containing microplastic fragments.

© Getty Images

A dose of the truth -

This may sound very alarming, and perhaps it is. For the time being, however, there has been no confirmation that microplastics cause any direct harm to human health.

© Getty Images

The real worry -

Arguably more worrying are the many toxic chemicals, known as persistent organic pollutants (POPs), that have been kicking around in our bloodstream for decades.

© Getty Images

POPs under scrutiny -

With chemical pollution crossing the ‘planetary boundary,’ meaning it threatens the planet just as much as climate change and habitat loss, POPs are coming into the limelight.

© Getty Images

Wake-up call -

Researchers are beginning to pay attention to the fact that hazardous chemicals used in products such as flame retardants and pesticides can linger inside us for many years.

© Getty Images

Safe Planet -

The UN Environmental Programme has established a global awareness campaign, Safe Planet, which aims to monitor the levels of toxic chemicals in the global population.

© Getty Images

The chemical body burden -

Their very own Bert van Bavel has developed a test to measure a person’s chemical ‘body burden,’ i.e. the amounts of POPs that accumulate in the body.

© Getty Images

Global reach -

Since 2010, the test has been carried out on more than 100,000 people across Europe, North and South America, Africa, and Southern Asia.

© Getty Images

Wide scope -

The test is designed to pick up POPs that can persist in the body for more than 20, 30, or even 50 years. Indeed, results often show the presence of POPs that have been banned for decades.

© Shutterstock

Case study -

The test results of one BBC journalist, for example, showed traces of DDE, a metabolite of the pesticide DDT that has not been used since the 1970s.

© Getty Images

The toxic cocktail -

According to van Bavel, we all have a "toxic cocktail" in our bodies, but the presence and high level of certain chemicals is more worrying than others.

© Shutterstock

PFAS - Particularly worrying, for example, is a newer class of chemical called PFAS or polyfluoroalkyl substances. They are known as ‘forever chemicals’ because of their persistence.

© Shutterstock

Ubiquitous POP -

PFAS are used in many everyday products that repel dirt and water, such as waterproof clothing, stain-resistant textiles, and non-stick cooking utensils.

© Shutterstock

PFAS allegations hit Apple -

Apple is facing serious allegations regarding its watch bands. A recent lawsuit claims the company concealed that a synthetic rubber used in their products contains PFAS.

© Getty Images

Goes without saying - It probably doesn’t need to be explained that having toxic chemicals in our bloodstream is a bad thing. It can affect everything from our brain development to our hormone systems.

© Shutterstock

Complex picture -

But the impact is also complex. According to Anna Lennquist, who is a senior toxicologist at the environmental NGO ChemSec, "Chemicals are working in many different ways in your body…”

© Shutterstock

Delayed effects -

“... some chemicals have delayed effects, for example ones that interact with our hormone systems.”

© Shutterstock

Delays of decades -

"If you are exposed in the womb or during puberty, the effects can turn up many years later, even decades later, perhaps as breast cancers or different metabolic disorders."

© Shutterstock 

The cocktail effect -

It is also the case that we are always exposed to more than one chemical at a time, and that the toxic cocktail effect can complicate things further.

© Shutterstock

How it works -

Some chemicals may enhance the effect of others, and some compounds can work against each other.

© Shutterstock

What can we do? -

Unfortunately, there is not much we can do as individuals to minimize or reduce our own chemical burden. These compounds are everywhere; they are impossible to avoid.

© Shutterstock

Support legislation -

We can, however, support legislation and UN conventions that seek to remove these hazardous compounds from circulation.

© Shutterstock

The status quo -

According to one BBC article, at the time of writing, the EU has proposed restrictions on around 12,000 substances.

© Getty Images

Largest ever ban? -

The European Environmental Bureau has described these proposed restrictions as the world’s “largest ever ban on toxic chemicals.”

© Getty Images

Holdups - As is ever the case with new regulation, however, things are taking a long time to get moving. This is where Lennquist has called for pressure from consumers.

© Shutterstock

The consumer voice -

"We can all use our voice by demanding greater transparency, clearer labeling and stricter regulation.”

© Shutterstock

Pressure on industry -

"With pressure from consumers and everyone else within the supply chain, the chemical manufacturing industry could shift much more rapidly.”

© Shutterstock

All in all -

"And reducing toxic chemical pollution is not only good for business, but for every one of us and future generations."

Sources: (BBC) (PBS)

See also: Silent killer: The hidden dangers of carbon monoxide

© Shutterstock