Are there tiny plastic particles inside our cats?

NEWS AND VIEWS: The Times reports today that plastic pollution has been detected inside the human body. My initial thought was if humans have plastic deep inside their bodies because they are ingesting foods which contains plastic then what about our pets; our cats and dogs? The original source of the food is the same or similar. I would expect, therefore, that cats to follow these findings. In fact, studies on animals have already suggested that minute particles of plastic are capable of entering their blood and lymphatic systems. Also, scientific research on animals has found that exposure to minute plastic particles causes inflammation and negatively affects fertility and can cause cancer. How many undiagnosed feline diseases are caused by plastic pollution or toxins from household products? We should know.

Plastic inside our bodies
Plastic inside our bodies. What about our companion animals? Image: YouTube.
Two useful tags. Click either to see the articles: Toxic to cats | Dangers to cats

The scientists used organ samples from a tissue bank that was originally collated to investigate neurodegenerative diseases. They used a new process, a technique known as Raman spectrometry, and found dozens of types of plastic within the tissue of humans.

They examined 47 samples taken from various organs of the body and found traces of plastic contamination in every one of them. One type of plastic found was polyethylene terephthalate. This plastic is used to make drink bottles. They also found polyethylene used in plastic bags. A chemical used to make plastics called bisphenol A was also found in all 47 organ samples. Bisphenol A is a poisonous chemical affecting the development and reproductive processes of animals.

Research carried out earlier and published in 2018 found evidence that micro-plastic particles were present in human faeces; 9/10 of the most widely used types of plastic were found in Britain and seven other countries.

Microparticles of plastic
Microparticles of plastic. Photo in public domain.

They don’t know the possible health effects and they don’t want to alarm people but it is alarmist! To think that we have bits of plastic inside us and we don’t know what effect it has on us is certainly concerning. Plastic is making its way into our bodies. You see it in marine wildlife and we eat millions of tons of marine wildlife. FYI – did you know that fish feel pain and humans suffocate billions of tons of fish to death.

Plastic contamination affects every part of the globe. At one time we thought plastic was a godsend, a wonderful product which could be used to build almost anything but now we see it as a real threat to the environment and to our health. Micro-plastic fragments are in the atmosphere and the Arctic wilderness. They fall in snowflakes onto ice flows and they fall as plastic rain in the national parks of America. You’ll find these particles in the Pyrenees and at the bottom of the Mariana Trench in the Pacific.

The researchers presented their findings at the American Chemical Society Fall 2020 Virtual Meeting & Expo.

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