Giant calculation: Chemicals in plastics are linked to hundreds of thousands of deaths

In ordinary ones chemicals used in plastic products may be linked to more than 160,000 premature deaths worldwide and millions of cases of heart disease.

This is how the calculation in the prestigious publication of the American Academy of Sciences assesses Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS).

The research was done by a team from the University of Maryland. The science magazine reported on it New Scientist.

Group compiled information from 1,700 previously published studies and assessed how people in 38 countries have been exposed to certain chemicals. The data basically covered a third of the world’s population.

The review focused on three compounds or groups of compounds. They are bisphenol A (bpa), di(2-ethylhexyl) phthalate (dehp) and pbde substances. Of these, bpa and dehp are familiar from food packaging.

The calculation does not mean one to one that the compounds in plastics cause a certain number of deaths and heart diseases.

However, the study calculated that in 2015, more than 5 million cases of heart disease and nearly 35,000 cerebral infarctions could be related to bpa. More than 160,000 deaths may have been linked to the Dehp phthalate compound. The dead were between the ages of 55 and 64.

“In the article has evaluated people’s exposure to chemicals that are found in plastics, but are also generally exposed to through food,” reflects the specialist researcher Merja Korkalainen From the Institute of Health and Welfare.

Korkalainen did not have time to delve deeply into the research, so he commented on the results thoughtfully. The research has been evaluated by five people, so the methods and results can be trusted in that sense.

Korkalainen still suspects that the study has not been able to distinguish how much of the exposure comes from plastics.

“Only three countries, the United States, Canada and South Korea, seem to be able to find accurate information in public databases, which gather information on the concentrations of chemicals in human urine and blood samples.”

Chemicals can dissolve from microplastics that have entered the body. We get microplastics in the body when we breathe air that contains microplastic particles. Another route is through the digestive tract.

“Nevertheless, almost all of the microplastic we receive does not remain in the body, but by far the majority is removed from the intestines in a natural way,” Korkalainen reminds.

The vast majority of the microplastics that come with breathing get stuck on the mucous membranes of the respiratory tract, where they are coughed up, inhaled or swallowed.

Research Regarding chemicals, first of all, bpa is approved as a raw material for food plastic in Finland, but it was banned in polycarbonate of baby bottles more than a decade ago.

“Bpa is a hormone disorder. In animal experiments, it has been found to affect, among other things, fertility, reproduction, learning and the immune system,” says Korkalainen.

According to European studies, the average exposure to bpa through food exceeds the limits of safe intake in all age groups, Korkalainen points out. The reference value of its tolerable daily intake has been considerably tightened.

Polycarbonate containing BPA is made, for example plastic cutlery and drinking bottles. Epoxy resin containing bisphenol is used in the inner coatings of beverage cans. It is not present in recyclable pet drinking bottles.

Dehp on the other hand, is the most common phthalate. Phthalates increase the flexibility, transparency and durability of plastics. According to THL, they are found in, for example, plastic wrappers, plastic containers and toys.

The use of phthalates, such as dehp, has been restricted in Europe and maximum concentrations have been set for them in toys and baby care products, for example. Phthalates have already been replaced by other chemicals.

“In Finland, in the 2015 and 2017 measurements, less than one percent of the adult population’s exposure exceeds the health-based biomonitoring limit values. There is no measurement data on the exposure of children and young people,” says Korkalainen.

Third mentioned pbde substances used especially as flame retardants for plastics and textiles. These fire retardants have been used in electrical equipment such as televisions and especially in foams for furniture and mattresses.

To be sure, pbde substances are banned in Europe, but they are still in the environment. Small children are exposed to these substances more than adults, e.g. as a result of breathing and swallowing more room dust

According to Korkalainen, studies in Finland and other countries have not found that exposure poses a health risk even to children.

“Although in the end it is not known how much of the chemicals and particles accumulated in our bodies originate from plastics, it is still easy to agree with the conclusion of the article, that the use of chemicals in plastics should be controlled”, Korkalainen reflects

The use of the mentioned compounds has been reduced at least in Europe, the United States and Canada.

Correction December 22 at 11:40 AM: Removed the part where the researcher considers how the deaths are related to bpa. They are combined with the dehp compound. Corrected the word hundreds of thousands in the title and beginning to more than 160,000. December 23rd at 3:00 PM: Removed the photo of the plastic wrap, as this type of product does not use phthalates, contrary to what was stated in the caption.

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