• Welcome to Phoenix Rising!

    Created in 2008, Phoenix Rising is the largest and oldest forum dedicated to furthering the understanding of and finding treatments for complex chronic illnesses such as chronic fatigue syndrome (ME/CFS), fibromyalgia (FM), long COVID, postural orthostatic tachycardia syndrome (POTS), mast cell activation syndrome (MCAS), and allied diseases.

    To become a member, simply click the Register button at the top right.

Mouse study shows microplastics infiltrate blood brain barrier

BrightCandle

Senior Member
Messages
1,147
Its certainly be a dangerous experiment letting plastics break down in the environment. We are all carrying around substantial amounts of micro plastic pieces already and its going to get much much worse. The inventions of the 20th century do seem to have been pretty bad for the environment generally, we did enormous amounts of harm to people.
 

Wishful

Senior Member
Messages
5,684
Location
Alberta
It's too bad that there's no definitive answer for when ME first appeared. If we knew that the first case of ME was in year xxxx, long before the first modern plastics, we could rule this out. If ME is due to microplastics, the number of cases each year should match the amount of microplastics in the environment.
 

Wishful

Senior Member
Messages
5,684
Location
Alberta
I also wanted to say that if this claim is verified, it would have a huge impact on society. There would be much stricter regulations about use of plastics ... and a huge campaign by the plastics industry to deny it. :grumpy:
 

BrightCandle

Senior Member
Messages
1,147
It's too bad that there's no definitive answer for when ME first appeared. If we knew that the first case of ME was in year xxxx, long before the first modern plastics, we could rule this out. If ME is due to microplastics, the number of cases each year should match the amount of microplastics in the environment.

ME predates plastics by hundreds of years. There are references in 1800 century medical texts to this condition so it can't be caused by plastics. Could be made more prevalent by or worsened by plastics of course but it can't be caused by it.
 

Wishful

Senior Member
Messages
5,684
Location
Alberta
There are references in 1800 century medical texts to this condition so it can't be caused by plastics.

I came across that reference, but it sounded so vague that it could be some other disease. I came across something saying that the first mention of PEM was 1969 or some such year. Since PEM is a distinct, reliable response to exertion, it should have showed up much earlier in records.
 

Wishful

Senior Member
Messages
5,684
Location
Alberta
Any ways of removing plastic of the body? Like chelating substances or so?

I doubt that there's any simple way to remove tiny foreign particles from inside cells. Immune cells might be able to surround it, but they probably lack the enzymes to break those polymers down. Hmmm, if we are getting these micro--and nano--bits of plastic in our bodies, is there some place where immune-cell-coated bits would logically accumulate, such as lymph nodes or kidneys/liver?

Great, now I'm imagining the equivalent of the Great Pacific Garbage Patch somewhere in my body. :eek: