Researchers at the University of Birmingham published a new study analyzing 31 different beverages, including coffee, tea, juices, sodas, and energy drinks, and found microplastics in every single one. The biggest disappointment was the discovery of the highest concentrations of microplastics in hot beverages, such as tea and coffee.
Lead researcher Professor Mohamed Abdallah from the University of Birmingham told The Independent, “We noted that a lot of research in the microplastics sphere is focusing on drinking water – tap water, bottled water – and we’ve also released a paper from the UK on water. But we realised that people don’t only drink water during their day. You drink tea, coffee, juices…”
“We found a ubiquitous presence of microplastics in all the cold and hot drinks we looked at. Which is pretty alarming, and from a scientific point of view suggests we should not only be looking at water, we should be more comprehensive in our research because other sources are substantial,” Abdallah explained.
Abdallah and his team found that heat significantly increased plastic shedding from packaging, with polypropylene and PET among the most common polymers found in the drinks.
“This supports previous studies indicating that heat increases microplastic release from packaging materials, thereby suggesting that hot beverages pose a greater risk of microplastic exposure than cold beverages,” the researchers wrote in the report.
He added: “We’re consuming millions of teas and coffees every morning so it’s something to definitely look at. There should definitely be legislative action from the government and also from international organisations to limit human exposure to microplastics … they’re everywhere.”
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Also read: Microplastics Are Linked To Heart Disease – Here’s How To Lower Your Risk
