The Dilemma of Food Transparency

Food manufacturers continue to obscure the ingredients in their products, using vague terms like “natural flavors” and an array of confusing names for added sugars. However, Harvey Wiley's regulatory expertise could tackle those misrepresentations. The challenges we face today extend beyond mere labels—many food producers unknowingly introduce additives to their items. With every meal, you may be consuming microplastics, tiny pieces of plastic that have infiltrated our food supply.

While it's unlikely you're swallowing large pieces of plastic, the persistent nature of plastic means that microscopic fragments from items like rain ponchos could be ending up in your food. As plastic is exposed to sunlight and turbulent water, it breaks down into smaller particles known as microplastics, measuring 5 mm or less.

Even if your local water source appears pristine, that doesn’t guarantee safety. Washing exfoliating beads from personal care products or tiny bits from plastic utensils can also contribute to microplastic pollution, leading these particles into our water supply.

The Prevalence of Microplastics

Research conducted in 2018 revealed an alarming statistic: a liter of water can contain an average of over nine plastic particles larger than 0.1 mm in diameter, with counts ranging from zero to sixty. This variability extends to different water sources, as many samples of deionized water showed no plastic contamination whatsoever.

Bottled water is no sanctuary either—another study from the same year indicated that 93% of bottled water contained microplastics, averaging more than ten particles per liter. Storing water in plastic containers exacerbates the issue, but the researchers noted that contamination might occur during packaging as well.

Microplastics are not confined to outdoor environments; they linger in indoor dust, visible in sunlit beams. Thus, it is conceivable that during the bottling process, stray particles could inadvertently mix into the water.

This raises questions about a peculiar case studied by French researchers: how did microplastics end up inside sealed packages of chicken? The results revealed that microplastic particles were present on the chicken itself, with four to eighteen pieces per package.

Even rinsing the chicken did not eliminate the issue. The packaging was clearly at fault, as the microplastics matched the characteristics of the packaging material itself. Researchers suggested that airborne particles from the processing plant might be responsible for this contamination, and estimates indicate that consumers could ingest between 0.2 and 1400 micrograms of plastic from meat alone.

The Implications of Microplastic Consumption

The health implications of microplastics remain unclear. Studies in mice have shown that specific plastics found on poultry can lead to various health issues, such as reduced energy and neurotoxic disorders. However, it is essential to recognize that mice receive doses far beyond what humans typically encounter. Therefore, while we might be safe, we cannot be entirely certain.

Even if the microplastics themselves are harmless, they can absorb harmful metals and chemicals from their environment, releasing these toxins into our bodies. Compounds like styrene, found in the case of the contaminated chicken, have been linked to serious health issues, including learning disabilities and cancer. Fortunately, only trace amounts were identified as toxic.

Yet, the concern remains. This is merely a glimpse into the microplastics present in chicken; the extent of their presence across our entire diet is still largely unknown. Water, meat, salt, and honey are just the tip of the iceberg. A century later, our understanding of what we consume remains limited, and in many ways, we have become unwitting participants in a modern poison squad.