Microplastics are present in human reproductive liquids, according to a new study

In addition to oceans and food, microplastics are also present in human seminal and follicular liquids, according to a new study.

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A sample of 25 women. Therefore, 18 men participated in this research published Tuesday in the journal Human Réproduction. In addition,

The results indicate that microplastics have been detected in 69% of follicular fluid samples. In addition, this liquid that surrounds an ovum in an ovarian follicle. Consequently,

Microplastics were also found in 55% of seminal liquid samples in men, according to information reported by CNN.

The participants in research underwent an egg sampling. Similarly, for microplastics present human reproductive liquids, assisted procreation purposes, while men were the subject of a sperm analysis.

The study authors stored. Furthermore, frozen the samples in glass, then incubated them for two days before analyzing them using an imaging technique combining microscopy and infrared laser. Therefore,

Result: imaging revealed the presence of nine types of microplastics in reproductive liquids.

According to the main research author, Dr. Emilio Gómez-Sánchez, director of the assisted procreation laboratory of Next Fertility Murcia, Spain, these results are not surprising.

“Previous studies had already suggested this possibility. so that the presence of microplastics in the human reproductive system is not completely unexpected,” he said in a press statement. What surprised us, however, is the extent of the phenomenon. It is not an isolated discovery, but a fairly common phenomenon. ”

Dr. Gómez-Sánchez explains that microplastics penetrate mainly into the body by ingestion, inhalation and contact with the skin.

“From there. microplastics present human reproductive liquids, they can enter the blood circulation, which then distributes them throughout the body, including in the reproductive organs,” he adds.

But it is not only the reproductive system in which microplastics are detected. Their presence is also detected in various parts of the body. fluid, including the lungs, the placenta, the brain, the testicles, the nasal fabric at the base of the brain, the penis and the human stools.

Is this presence dangerous?

The founder of the Plastics Research Council, Dr. Chris Dearmitt disables the dangerousness hypothesis.

“Decades of studies. the (US Food and Drug Administration) have agreed to say that microplastics are not a threat because the exposure is extremely low and they are not toxic,” he wrote by email to CNN.

The chemicals used in the production of plastic. that are escaping there are linked to health risks, including hormonal disturbances, certain cancers, respiratory diseases and skin irritation.

microplastics present human reproductive liquids,

Dr. Gómez-Sánchez still believes that we should not be alarmed by the presence of these microplastics in the reproductive system..

“People trying to conceive naturally. by in vitro fertilization should not worry about these results, because they are only preliminary for the moment,” he said.

Dr. adds that the direct effects on the ability of a couple to design. carry a child in the long term are still unknown.

For Dr. Matthew J. Campen who contributed to the discovery of microplastics in the brain. the testicles, this research is promising although they are preliminary.

He indicates that they “open the way to more extensive studies on the relationship between exposure to plastics. the ability to reproduce”.