Are we drinking OUR CLOTHES?
While reading an article on stuff earlier this week about plastic microfibers in bottled water, I wondered; Are we drinking our clothes?
US studies reveal that bottled water, although labelled pure and natural still contains plastic microfibres from synthetic clothing. 20 brands of bottled water were tested and 19 of them came back positive, that’s UNBELIEVABLE, 19 out of 20 bottles of water containing plastic.
According to research by Orb Media at the State University of New York, people who drink a litre of bottled water a day might be ingesting tens of thousands of pieces of microplastic each year.The fibres come in a range of sizes and materials, studies have found all sorts of materials in water (not a good thing) such as nylon, polypropylene and polyethylene terephthalate.
Where is all this plastic coming from and how is it polluting our water?
Microfibres are released into the ocean through your washing machine. When you put clothes made from synthetic materials in a washing machine the microfibers released from your clothing then travel to your local wastewater treatment plant, where up to 40% of them enter rivers, lakes and oceans.
Other sources of microplastics and microfibers are common things used in your daily routine i.e. some toothpaste and face washes contain little microplastic beads to help cleanse your skin and teeth. Which when washed down the sink go to the same place and the microfibres from your washing machine.
But it's not only bottled water that contains microfibres, some tap water samples from more than a dozen nations were analysed by scientists for another investigation by Orb Media, who shared the findings with the Guardian newspaper. Overall, 83% of the samples were polluted with plastic fibres.
What’s the solution?
I think the best way to decrease microplastic production is to buy clothes made from natural fibres such as cotton, linen, and wool. Natural fibres will eventually break down in the environment. Plastic fibres will never go away. Other simple solutions include fill up your washing machine. Washing a full load results in less friction between the clothes and fewer fibres released.
Would you want to eat plastic? I’m guessing no! By consuming this water we let microplastics into our body, imagine what it’s doing to us! Do something before it’s too late!
