Scientists from Cleveland Clinic (an American research and medical center) found that microscopic plastic particles entering the arteries increase the likelihood of heart attack and stroke. Research results published In New England Journal of Medicine (EJM).
Microplastics are small (usually less than five millimeters) plastic particles that enter the environment from a variety of sources, including cosmetics, clothing and industrial processes, and are also formed by the breakdown of larger plastic particles. They can also enter the human body through breathing, eating and drinking.
Scientists have found that the entry of such particles into the carotid arteries, which supply blood and oxygen to the brain, can significantly increase the risk of heart attack and stroke. This became clear as a result of a study on the structure and composition of plaques surgically removed from these paired vessels from 257 people.
Researchers found that people with evidence of microplastic in their carotid arteries had a fourfold increased risk of heart attack and stroke in the years following surgery. Scientists also found more evidence of inflammation in people with pieces of plastic in their blood vessels.
According to the study authors, the findings do not prove that plastic particles cause strokes and heart attacks. However, the toxins they contain can trigger events that lead to the development of atherosclerosis.
Previous scientists Pallets Seaways for the spread of microplastic debris.