Microplastics can potentially cause inflammatory bowel disease, cardiovascular disease, and cancer, so caution is required.
The New York Post reported on microplastics in tea bags on the 14th (local time). A recent study found that as many as 1.2 billion small pieces of plastic are released per 1 ml when tea is made with a tea bag made of plastic polypropylene.
It is more dangerous to heat a mug or add more hot water in the presence of a tea bag. This is because more microplastics can be released.
Experts pointed out that microplastics are potentially linked to inflammatory bowel disease, cardiovascular disease, and cancer.
However, not all tea bags are a problem. Tea bags are made of paper or vegetable materials. However, the problem is that it is not easy to figure out what the tea bag is made of.
Experts advised that if you want to drink tea while avoiding microplastics, you should choose tea that is leafy. In addition, rinsing tea bags under running water is somewhat effective in removing plastic.
Hong Kong’s South China Morning Post (SCMP) also dealt with microplastics in teabags based on a joint study by researchers from Barcelona Autonomous University, Egypt’s Sohag University, and the Helmholtz Environmental Research Center in Leipzig, Germany, published in the international journal Chemosphere.
The research team concluded that millions of microplastics in the tea bag can enter the human body when drinking tea using tea bags, potentially adversely affecting health. In particular, cells in the intestine absorb a lot of microplastics, and if they enter the intestine, they are highly likely to cause inflammatory bowel disease. The researchers argued, “Further research is needed on the effects of chronic exposure to microplastics on human health.”
JULIE KIM
US ASIA JOURNAL
