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Microplastic contamination of table salts from Taiwan, including a global review.

ABSTRACT: Plastic pollution is a rapidly worsening environmental problem, especially in oceanic habitats. Environmental pollution with microplastic particles is also causing food consumed by humans to be increasingly polluted, including table salts. Therefore, we present the first study which focuses only on table salt products purchased in Taiwan which we examined for the presence of microplastics. We used Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy to identify the polymer type of each particle. Within 4.4?kg of salt, we detected 43 microplastic particles which averages to 9.77 microplastic particles/kg. The identified polymer types were, in descending abundance, polypropylene, polyethylene, polystyrene, polyester, polyetherimide, polyethylene terephthalate, and polyoxymethylene. We combined our novel results with those of previous studies to provide the first global review of microplastic contamination of table salts. We found that 94% of salt products tested worldwide contained microplastics, with 3 out of 27 polymer types (polyethylene terephthalate, polypropylene, polyethylene) accounting for the majority of all particles. Averaging over seven separate studies, table salts contain a mean of 140.2 microplastic particles/kg. With a mean annual salt consumption of ~3.75?kg/year, humans therefore annually ingest several hundred microplastic particles from salt alone.

SUBMITTER: Lee H

PROVIDER: S-EPMC6626012 | biostudies-literature | 2019 Jul

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Microplastic contamination of table salts from Taiwan, including a global review.

Lee Hyemi H Kunz Alexander A Shim Won Joon WJ Walther Bruno A BA

Scientific reports 20190712 1

Plastic pollution is a rapidly worsening environmental problem, especially in oceanic habitats. Environmental pollution with microplastic particles is also causing food consumed by humans to be increasingly polluted, including table salts. Therefore, we present the first study which focuses only on table salt products purchased in Taiwan which we examined for the presence of microplastics. We used Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy to identify the polymer type of each particle. Within 4.4 k ...[more]

PMID: 31300670

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Project description:BackgroundMicroplastics (MPs) have contaminated all compartments of the marine environment including biota such as seafood; ingestion from such sources is one of the two major uptake routes identified for human exposure.ObjectivesThe objectives were to conduct a systematic review and meta-analysis of the levels of MP contamination in seafood and to subsequently estimate the annual human uptake.MethodsMEDLINE, EMBASE, and Web of Science were searched from launch (1947, 1974, and 1900, respectively) up to October 2020 for all studies reporting MP content in seafood species. Mean, standard deviations, and ranges of MPs found were collated. Studies were appraised systematically using a bespoke risk of bias (RoB) assessment tool.ResultsFifty studies were included in the systematic review and 19 in the meta-analysis. Evidence was available on four phyla: mollusks, crustaceans, fish, and echinodermata. The majority of studies identified MP contamination in seafood and reported MP content <1 MP/g, with 26% of studies rated as having a high RoB, mainly due to analysis or reporting weaknesses. Mollusks collected off the coasts of Asia were the most heavily contaminated, coinciding with reported trends of MP contamination in the sea. According to the statistical summary, MP content was 0-10.5 MPs/g in mollusks, 0.1-8.6 MPs/g in crustaceans, 0-2.9 MPs/g in fish, and 1 MP/g in echinodermata. Maximum annual human MP uptake was estimated to be close to 55,000 MP particles. Statistical, sample, and methodological heterogeneity was high.DiscussionThis is the first systematic review, to our knowledge, to assess and quantify MP contamination of seafood and human uptake from its consumption, suggesting that action must be considered in order to reduce human exposure via such consumption. Further high-quality research using standardized methods is needed to cement the scientific evidence on MP contamination and human exposures. https://doi.org/10.1289/EHP7171.

Dataset Information

Microplastic contamination of table salts from Taiwan, including a global review.

Publications

Microplastic contamination of table salts from Taiwan, including a global review.

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