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The Guardian - US
The Guardian - US
Adrienne Matei

Curb ‘stupid plastics’ and stop industry BS: urgent actions to prevent a plastic crisis

Small plastic parts and microplastics of varying colors in the sand of a beach surrounded by rocks
Small plastic parts and microplastics in the sand of Famara beach, Lanzarote, Spain. Photograph: Susanne Fritzsche/Alamy

Plastic is everywhere, including our bodies. This year, various researchers found microplastics in every sample of placental tissue they tested; in human arteries, where plastics correlate with increased risk of heart attacks and strokes; in all 27 of the human testes they studied; and the semen of 40 otherwise healthy patients, adding to concerns that plastics – many of which contain hormone-disrupting chemicals – may be contributing to a global decline in sperm health.

These recent discoveries add to the rapidly mounting evidence of plastic’s ubiquity and our growing understanding of the health risks it poses.

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