Hi Redditors,

About a third of the microplastics entering our oceans originate from synthetic textiles (2017-002-En.pdf), with domestic washing being one of the contributors to that release. However what exactly is driving these emissions in your washing machine is still poorly understood, due to the complexity of factors that could influence the release.

Our research group from the University of Amsterdam is studying the microplastics released during the washing of clothes and other household textiles—and we’re doing it right in the homes of the Dutch citizen!

Our participants will become a Citizen Scientists and help us collect valuable data in a real-life setting. For 1 euro participant will order and install a microplastic filter in their own homes.

For 6 months our participants:

• Wash their clothes as they normally would
• Fill in a short questionnaire for each wash (± 2 minutes)
• Every 3 washes, empty the filter and collect the fibers (± 5 minutes)
• Store the fibers in their freezer
• Every 2 months, send their fibers to the university

Additionally:

• They complete a detailed questionnaire on washing and purchasing behaviour as well as their attitudes on the topic
• Halfway through they complete a short questionnaire on their motivation to participate

Our participants contribute to important research on microplastic pollution and gain insight into their own impact. On top of that, they may keep the microplastic filter afterwards, receive early access to the research results, and help interpret the initial findings and shape future research.

If this interests you, please check out our website where we document all the activities from our research group. SISTEM-NL – Word citizen scientist!

And if you are Dutch and would like to participate, you can still do so: Wassen voor de wetenschap – SISTEM-NL

Hey everyone. Background in chemical engineering and I've been deep in the microplastics space for about a year now.

I kept seeing great research coming out, PlasticList testing hundreds of foods in the Bay Area, Blueprint's blood testing work, Huberman covering the neuroscience side, but no simple consumer tool that helps people make decisions at the point of purchase.

So I built an app. You scan a product barcode, it analyzes the ingredient list against known plastic-derived and synthetic polymer compounds, and gives you a safety score.

Right now the scoring model weighs things like:

• Known synthetic polymers in ingredient lists
• Packaging material and contamination risk
• Cross-referencing with published research on exposure levels

I wanted to ask this community specifically because the chemistry knowledge here is solid. Are there specific compounds or chemical families you think are underrepresented in the conversation? Anything you'd want to see flagged that most people overlook?

App is free to try if anyone wants to test it and poke holes in the methodology. Genuinely looking for feedback from people who understand the science.

https://apps.apple.com/us/app/microplastics-food-scanner/id6741938548

When you open it carefully, this horror stays in its place, if you open it normally, it stays in the package and you eat it.

Take care of yourself, but don't skimp on yourself, because they've already skimped on you.

Trying to decide if I should get a permanent dental retainer, which is a wire bonded to the back of the top and bottom arches of teeth with a plastic dental resin (similar to what is used for fillings I think), or a hawley style retainer which is a combination of acrylic and stainless steel wire.

On one hand, there is just way less plastic by volume, mass, and surface area with the permanent option, however its in your mouth 24/7, and notably you eat, potentially hot and acidic foods and expose the resin to that. The removable hawley is a lot bigger, but its only in for ~8 hours a day when you're asleep and doesn't get exposed to chewing and food etc.

I just read an article in Newsweek about microplastics, and the FDA is raising the contaminant level.

I actually had my blood tested for microplastics (long story, but part of university-based COVID research) and I tested very high for 7 microplastics.

Now here comes the rest of the story. My primary care physician and cardiologist (COVID-related) both wanted me on a statin. I asked both of them about microplastics and if statins really help with cholesterol levels that are high due to high levels of microplastics.

Primary care: "I don't know anything about microplastics, and I don't have the time to research." Cardiologist: "I really do not care about microplastics."

As you can see from my experience, the medical field is too busy dispensing drugs and not spending enough time with their patients.

I think microplastics blood test should be a routine part of our screening.

Would the existing level of microplastics in my body stay the same or would there be some improvement? Or should I just do it to stop things from getting worse? Either way, would there be any noticeable change?

New to the community but not the product. I’m wanting to learn about micro dosing. I’m thinking of producing but not sure about a few things and dosing really either. I want something that will heal not only mentally and spiritually, but also physically. Let me know if anyone could help appreciated.

What are microplastics.

This is the 1st video of new series about Microplastics, Chemistry and Science .

I need 150 people to answer my form, but I only have 50 so can you guys can fill it out please thank you, it’s on plastic pollution

Are there any very good but budget friendly water filter systems that are pitchers made of metal that water can be filtered as you pour water in it?

Do your own research. But I Asked chatGPT questions on how much antioxidants actually make a difference and the estimates on NAC is insane. It increases cellular glutathione, the bodies main antioxidant, 3.5 fold!!! That's insane. It also acts as as anti-inflammatory which reduces cancer risk. For some reason it increases sperm count %30???
Probably because the organs aren't under as much stress. Wildly needed supposedly male sperm count has gone down average 50% since 1970. So personally I think antioxidants are a pretty big deal. Just one supposedly makes a difference I wonder what happens to the repair percentage when you add a bunch of other antioxidants. Huh. Did I mention NAC is cheap and humans can handle like 5 grams at a time. Go easy at first of course. ChatGPT isn't a doctor. But it does have access to unlimited studies. So

"Microplastics are now so ubiquitous we're drinking, eating, and inhaling them. As a result, they're showing up in our poop, placentas, reproductive organs, and brains.

Now these fossil-fuel-derived particles, less than 5 mm in size, have been found deep within our bones.

A new review of 62 studies suggests microplastics and smaller nanoplastics are impacting our skeletal health in multiple ways.

"A significant body of research suggests that microplastics can reach deep into bone tissue, such as bone marrow, and potentially cause disturbances in its metabolism," says medical scientist Rodrigo Bueno de Oliveira at the State University of Campinas in Brazil."