The worst drinks for microplastic contamination revealed

[Retro]

Microplastics are everywhere, even in the air we breathe. This unpleasant stuff is expecially prevalent in hot tea and coffee served in disposable cups which most of us drink, where it appears that the heat is causing more of it to leach out. I've long noticed a tendency for an unpleasant plasticky taste to drinks served in them and suspected that the plastic must be leaching off the cup. Even cold juices like pure orange Tropicana sold in small plastic bottles can have this taste, but it tends to be less pronounced. Having said this, I recently bought a plastic bottled orange at a cafe which tasted so plasticky that it was disgusting and undrinkable. I told the staff who gave me a replacement bottle which was just as bad, so I got a refund for it and had a glass of water instead which had no aftertaste.

Having read this article, I'm now gonna try to reduce my consumption of these products which tends to run to two teas a day when I'm in the office, so wish me luck...

Turns out that even frigging tap water has lots of it and surprisingly, it's at about the same level as water sold in plastic bottles.

I wonder how much illness all this plastic is causing people and animals over time as it's known that it's something that we shouldn't ingest. The study didn't reveal that as it only covered the concentrations found.

The article has all the facts and figures about this which makes for uncomfortable reading.

Microplastics are all around us – in the air we breathe, in seas and rivers, they're found in the guts of sharks, and inside growing plants.

They’re also inside humans, too: in our blood, accumulating in our brains, and even in our testicles.

So it is perhaps unsurprising to learn that one of the key means of entering the body is through the fluids we drink. Previous studies have established that microplastics are present in both tap water and bottled water, but new research has revealed that hot drinks may be an even bigger source of microplastics than was previously realised.

The worst drinks for microplastic contamination revealed

New research has revealed that hot drinks may be an even bigger source of microplastics than was previously realised

uk.yahoo.com

 

[Retro]

@Mars @Tiffany as two of our most health conscious members, I think you'll be interested in this.

 

[AllThingsTech]

I hate the taste of tap water!

 

[Tiffany]

Oh, yeah, plastics found in food and drink containers are pretty destructive to your health. I avoid plastics by storing all of my leftovers in glass containers. If I have to put some food in a plastic bag, I'll line it with bleach free parchment paper to limit some plastic exposure. I don't drink any drinks out of bottles and to make coffee we use a percolator with a glass top. There's something to be said about metal leaching into your food, like aluminum etc. from cooking pans, but there's not much you can do as an alternative to a coffee maker but use a percolator.

For water, we use a RO system. That's not perfect either because our water is transported through pex pipe, however, the RO system can limit other bad containments, so you have to choose your poison on that one.

For tea, I use a an electric tea kettle and always use a safe mug.

Plastics can also affect your hormones and thyroid function if you're exposed to it enough.

If you do use energy drinks, good luck on finding one that has a safe container. For cookware, we avoid all of the PUFA's etc. too.

It's really hard to stay a healthy human when so much of what we eat or drink, even if it's prepared by ourselves, has some kind of bad exposure.

Taking glutathione is often a helpful way to dial down toxins in your body.

 

[live627]

Gas stoves can also leach into food. Might be why some people online say they prefer the taste, or that it tastes "better". Yeah sure, buddy, must be nostalgia. Sometimes a bite of mac n' cheese has a weird taste.

 

[Tiffany]

I have only lived in one house that had a gas cook top I didn't like it because of the flame and the gas. I prefer electric cook tops. Never thought that there could be a taste, but that makes sense because gas only has a smell because it's added so you can be alert that you have a gas leak.

 

[Mars]

Sad but true, micro plastics are everywhere, all we can do is damage limitation.

@Tiffany, an RO system would certainly qualify under the heading of 'damage limitation', that's for sure.
As far as cookware goes, non-stick/teflon cookware is a no-no in my kitchen; this stuff is toxic. Cast iron is fine, and as a bonus you get some lovely iron molecules leaching into the food. There is a caveat here, make sure that lovely cast iron is from a reputable maker. Sweden produces some of the best. Forget about any cookware made in china, not even glass! (you guessed it, I don't trust China)