Microplastics Facts

· Global plastic production is around 460 million metric tons yearly and could soar 70% by 2040. CNN 8/20/25

· Plastic is created from fossil fuels, the biggest contributor to greenhouse gasses. Beyond Plastics 2024

· Americans create more plastic waste than any other country; almost 500 pounds per person per year. Beyond Plastics 2024

· Today, only 5-6% of plastic is recycled, the rest ends up incinerated, in landfill or released into the environment. Beyond Plastics 2024

· Plastic breaks down into particles, called microplastics (the size of a grain of salt or smaller. They further degrade into particles, called nanoplastics. NY Presbyterian 5/3/24

· By one estimate, 10 to 40 million metric tons of microplastics are released yearly—about two to six times the weight of the Great Pyramid of Giza. Scientific American 2025

· Microplastics have been found in the brain, heart arteries, lungs, blood, kidneys, livers, intestines, testicles, reproductive organs, joints, bone marrow, breast milk, and placentas of humans. Washington Post, Break Free From Plastics, Take 3 for the Sea, Guardian 2024

· Concentrations of microplastics in the brain rose by roughly 50% between 2016-2024. The human brain may contain about seven grams of tiny plastic shards (the weight of a plastic spoon). Microplastic concentrations were three to five times higher in brains of deceased patients with dementia versus those without. Smithsonian Magazine 2/4/25

· A New England Journal of Medicine study found that patients with microplastics and nanoplastics in their arteries had a higher risk of heart attack, stroke and early death. Washington Post 6/10/24, New York Times 6/7/24

· Microplastics in human testicles may be linked to declining sperm counts in men, according to research.Washington Post 6/10/24

· 16,000 chemicals are used to make plastics and many of these chemicals are carcinogens. Beyond Plastics 2024

· The chemicals that leach from plastic can contribute to increasingly prevalent chronic diseases, from obesity to infertility, from neurological disorders to weakened immune system, and from cardiovascular disease to cancers. Washington Post 6/10/24

· A study by NYU School of Medicine found that 13.4% of all cardiovascular deaths of people 55-64 were connected to exposure to chemicals, known as phthalates, from plastic. Newsday 5/2/25

· Leading health researchers and doctors called plastic pollution a “grave growing and underrecognized danger” to public health that was costing the world at least $1.5 trillion a year. New York Times 8/14/25

· Scientists have found microplastics everywhere, from the deepest trench in the ocean to the summit of Mount Everest. National Geographic 5/8/23

· According to scientists, adults inhale or ingest on average 74,000 to 121,000 microplastic particles per year through breathing, eating and drinking. Washington Post 6/10/24

· One liter of water from a plastic bottle contained an average of 240,000 plastic particles from seven types of plastics, including nanoplastics, according to a Columbia/Rutgers March 2024 study. Proceedings of the National Academy of Science 1/8/24