What are Microplastics?

Microplastics are small pieces of plastic less than 5 millimeters in size, although they are small but their impact on our oceans, water bodies and environment is enorm big.

Microplastics are originated from large plastic debris, the weather and time degrade the larger plastic debris in to smaller ones, that called microplatics.

Furthermore, we humane beings also release the microplastics in to the oceans by using the products that contain microplastics like clothes, paints, auto tires, plastic packages and bags, and cosmitics like shampoos, and toothpastes.

The problem with the microplastics is their size, the normal filter systems and water treatment plants cannot filter them and they flow easily in the water bodies and oceans, that are dangerous for aquatic life like fish, turtles and other marine organisms.

Unfortunately, microplastics is not found alone in Arctic snow and deep sea, but scientists also found the microplastics in humane bodies, microplastics are everywhere. Microplastics come in our bodies through the weather and dust particles that we breath, the contaminated fish that we eat, bottled water, beer and the honey, they all contain microplastics.

Recently a prophessor at the McGill University found the microplastics in tea bags. They were shocked after testing the tea bags, because, they found billions of particles in a single cup of tea. A plastic tea bag at 95 degrees Celsius can release upto 11,6 billion microplastics and 3.1 billion nanoplastics in a tea cup.

Wether it is dangerous for human health or not is not clear, still there is need for further researches to find the impacts of big amounts of microplastics in human body. But it is found that microplastic is dangerous to our environment, seas and oceans.

You can do something good to our oceans by reducing the use of plastic by using more sustainable and plastic free products.