Public health

Microplastics found in more than 90% of bottled water, study says

Researchers find levels of plastic fibres in popular bottled water brands could be twice as high as those found in tap water

A new analysis of some of the world’s most popular bottled water brands says more than 90% contain tiny pieces of plastic. Analysis of 259 bottles from 19 locations in nine countries across 11 different brands found an average of 325 plastic particles for every litre of water being sold. Concentrations were as high as 10,000 plastic pieces for every litre of water.

Of the 259 bottles tested, only 17 were free of plastics, according to the study. Scientists based at the State University of New York in Fredonia were commissioned by journalism project Orb Media to analyse the bottled water. The scientists wrote they had “found roughly twice as many plastic particles within bottled water” compared with their previous study of tap water, reported by the Guardian.

According to the new study, the most common type of plastic fragment found was polypropylene – the same type of plastic used to make bottle caps. The bottles analysed were bought in the US, China, Brazil, India, Indonesia, Mexico, Lebanon, Kenya and Thailand. Scientists used Nile red dye to fluoresce particles in the […]

More about microplastics:

Study: People Who Only Drink Bottled Water Ingest 90,000 Microplastic Particles Per Year

Microplastics are getting into mosquitoes, contaminating new food chains

Humans, fish and other animals are consuming microfibers in food and water

Proving Terrible For the Marine Life: Microplastics

Microplastic contamination: Plastic fibres found in tap water around the world

Why microplastic debris may be the next big threat to our seas

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