Microplastics in arteries linked to increase in heart disease

Microplastics and nanoplastics are everywhere – even in the fatty deposits called plaque that can build up in the arteries and cause cardiovascular disease and strokes.

Researchers have found that in people with evidence of microplastics in the plaques, or atheromas, in their carotid arteries, the risk of heart attack, stroke or death was four-and-a-half times higher than in those whose plaque didn’t contain plastic.

Previous studies showed that tiny bits of plastic, some too small to be seen, can enter the human body through food, inhalation or exposure to the skin and then found in the placenta, lungs, liver, breast milk, urine and blood.  

Full story: New England Journal of Medicine

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