Microplastics found in breast milk of healthy mothers for first time in new health fear for babies 

For the first time, microplastics have been found in human breast milk, raising the specter of potential health effects for babies.

After 34 healthy mothers gave milk samples after delivery, microscopic plastic particles were detected in three quarters of them.

The world produces 344 million tons of plastic every year, and scientists have pointed to the risks of breaking it.

It has been found in the air we breathe, our seas and the earth.

But a new area of ​​research has increasingly found plastic — a substance invented only in the 20th century — in our bodies.

It’s been discovered in babies in the womb, in the human brain — and now in breast milk.

Despite this, scientists say breast milk is still the best way to feed a baby for most mothers — and using plastic bottles and formula can expose babies to even more plastic.

Health concerns related to plastics include the chemicals used to soften them, known as phthalates, which can mimic the effects of sex hormones in humans.

For years, plastic particles were considered inert. But research is increasingly showing harmful effects on human cells in the lab and in animals. In the last experiment, 1 gram of milk was collected one week after the mothers gave birth.

To avoid contamination, the milk was collected in non-plastic containers and expressed by hand instead of using a breast pump.

The milk samples with plastic each contained between one and five microparticles. The researchers, writing in the journal Polymers, said their research showed that human exposure to microplastics was “inevitable.”

The particles came from PVC, polyethylene and polypropylene, all common plastics in materials ranging from plastic bottles and packaging, synthetic leather, floor tiles and furniture upholstery. The discovery was made by an Italian team that identified microplastics in human placentas in 2020.

dr. Valentina Notarstefano, from the Universita Politecnica delle Marche in Ancona, said: ‘The evidence of the presence of microplastics in breast milk increases our deep concern about the extremely vulnerable population of infants.

After 34 healthy mothers gave milk samples after delivery, microscopic plastic particles were detected in three quarters of them

‘It will be crucial to look at ways to reduce exposure during pregnancy and breastfeeding.

“Studies like ours should not curb breastfeeding, but put pressure on politicians to make laws that reduce pollution.”

Previous studies have shown that infants fed infant formula also ingest millions of microplastic particles every day. The researchers say their findings likely underestimated the amount of plastic in breast milk, because their equipment couldn’t analyze particles smaller than two microns — up to 40 times smaller than the width of a human hair.

Professor Notarstefano advised pregnant women: ‘Be more careful to avoid plastic-wrapped food and drinks, cosmetics and toothpastes containing microplastics, and clothing made of synthetic materials.’

Professor Dick Vethaak, from VU University Amsterdam in the Netherlands, who this year found microplastics in human blood, added: ‘We are only seeing the tip of the microplastics iceberg. Smaller nano-sized plastics are probably more common and more toxic.’