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Fairly worried. I limit plastic but even limited it's in a lot. I want to install a filter on my washing machine to help catch micro plastics from my clothes. I have a septic but I think it would still be helpful in adding yet another barrier before they filter into groundwater.
I'm a little more worried since they said that it will create blockages in your veins and arteries so you're more likely to stroke the fuck out.
Everything sucks and there isn't much to do about it on the individual scale and the push to put the moral onus on consumers is fucking bullshit. I'm 90% certain the recycling service I pay extra for just dumps it with my regular garbage.
this is a case where I basically decide not to worry about something so staggeringly out of my control
Nothing can be done to prevent it, it's already in every fresh water source.
How worried?
Super fucking worried, but there are also so many other things to be worried about rn that I just accept the fact that I will likely die from some form of forever chemical cancer.
I've been avoiding plasticware for food for about a decade, I drink from glasses or glass bottles, never use disposable utensils etc, but I wasn't paying that much attention to fabric content until I had a baby. I was more concerned with the chemical leeching directly, but then I read more about how microplastics effect the endocrine system and how infants are especially vulnerable due to their size and how they chew on everything. That spurred me to only get plant based fabrics for the kiddo, mostly from 2nd hand shops. I think the only plastic stuff he wears is his snow gear and shoes. I know I can't protect him forever, but I'll do what I can where I can.
I don't sit around thinking about microplastics. Microplastics are something to worry about when you are making purchases, but not something you can realistically worry about while living the rest of your life.
Most of your microplastics aren't coming from your tide pods anyway. They actually come from plastic fibers in your clothing that get abraded in your washer and dryer.
What can you do about it? Try to use glass, metal and ceramic cookware. Avoid teflon cookware. Purchase clothing that has all natural fibers. Avoid facial scrubs that have micro beads, although those have been banned pretty much every in the US in the last decade.
At the end of the day, I worry about microplastics about as much as I worry about irradiated iodine from nuclear bomb tests.
First they came for our Lead based fuel Then they came for our Lead based paint They're not touching Lead based ammo, because Lead based ammo isn't killing people. People are killing people.
Do pods not just dissolve?
Dissolving doesn't mean it no longer exists. The particles are just too small to see.
I'm not. I'm 52 years old. That ship sailed for me a long time ago.
Nothing? Stop using so many plastic things.
Unless everyone changes, there's microplastic in your drinking water. The problem is so far along that even if we stopped all plastic products sale and manufacturing today, and actively worked to clean out all of the microplastic from the globe on an unprecedented level, we would still have microplastic issues by the time you die, even if you live longer than any human has ever lived before.
This isn't "it's hopeless and we shouldn't bother", it's more "there's more to do than can be done in anyone's lifetime, so try not to make it any worse".
It's good that you're aware and trying, you should keep doing that. Worrying about it all the time isn't really helpful. Just try not to unnecessarily contribute to the problem.
At some point in your life you realize that you can't worry about things you don't have control about
Make a list of all the things to worry about. Where does microplastics fall on that list? Is it above or below flushing with the toilet lid open?
That depends on how aggressively they modify hormones and how long term a view you have.
Will it end the human race?
Probably not.
Will it lead to birth defects and cancer upticks, yup.
It bothers me that people are worried about this and pfas but not nitrogen oxides or failures-to-deliver. It shows we worry about what we are told to worry about, rather than what maybe we should worry about.
What is failure-to-deliver? A woman who stays pregnant fo the rest of her life?
Pretty much. It is when someone sells stock in a company but never delivers the stock. It's a great way to steal a bunch of money from the economy.
Use the prioritization list template from "What Color Is Your Parachute."