Microplastics are consistently detected in food, water, air, stool, blood, placenta and breast milk, with reported effects including gut inflammation, disrupted microbiota, respiratory disease, endocrine dysfunction and possible neurotoxicity. Ingestion is the best-studied route, while inhalation is gaining recognition and dermal exposure remains under-researched.
An umbrella review in the International Journal of Toxicology synthesising evidence on how microplastics reach the body through ingestion, inhalation and dermal contact. It catalogues the health outcomes reported so far and identifies where the evidence is thin.
