Study links microplastics in blood to higher risk of heart attack

A new study finds that 84% of heart attack patients had detectable microplastics in their blood, compared to 40% of those with stable heart disease and 32% with normal arteries Source: El Colombiano, Infobae, El País. The research, published in the European Heart Journal, adds to evidence linking environmental pollution to cardiovascular harm.

Key findings

• Patients who had suffered a heart attack had nearly double the level of microplastics compared to those with chronic ischemic heart disease Source: El Colombiano.
• Smokers were six times more likely to have high microplastic levels, and those exposed to high air pollution also showed elevated levels Source: Infobae.
• Every patient who both smoked and was regularly exposed to high air pollution had elevated microplastics Source: Infobae.
• The most common plastic was polyethylene, used in packaging and consumer products Source: El Colombiano, Infobae, El País.

What the researchers say

Lead author Emanuele Barbato stated: "Our findings do not prove that microplastics cause heart attacks, but they reveal a strong association between environmental exposure, microplastics in the blood, and cardiovascular disease" Source: Infobae, El País. He suggested that smoking might facilitate the entry of microplastics into the bloodstream via the lungs, and air pollution may act similarly Source: El País.

Caveats

The study is small (61 patients) Source: Infobae. Experts caution that detecting and measuring microplastics' real health effects remains a technical challenge Source: El País. An editorial by Andreas Daiber noted that "the convergence of epidemiological, clinical, and mechanical evidence suggests that plastic pollution may represent a previously underestimated cardiovascular risk factor" Source: Infobae, EFE.