Many people think that food packaging plastic is harmless because they are not being digested directly.
![[STUDY] Food Packaging Plastic Entering Brain Could Increase Neurodegeneration Risks, Claim Experts!](https://1734811051.rsc.cdn77.org/data/images/full/426305/study-food-packaging-plastic-entering-brain-could-increase-neurodegeneration-risks-claim-experts.jpg?w=820 "[STUDY] Food Packaging Plastic Entering Brain Could Increase Neurodegeneration Risks, Claim Experts!")
Brioche rolls packaged in plastic are pictured at a branch of Asda in north London on April 27, 2018. - 42 firms, responsible for 80 percent of plastic packaging sold in Britain, have signed up to a pact that aims to tackle plastic pollution over the next seven years through a series of measures. (Photo by Daniel LEAL / AFP)
However, a new study claimed that this widely used plastic can actually enter the brain after ingesting the food contained in the packaging.
Health researchers shared this alarming finding at the University of Vienna.
They warned that polystyrene, a plastic commonly used in food packaging, can be detected inside the human brain two hours after ingestion.
Food Packaging Plastic Can Enter Your Brain!
According to Interesting Engineering's latest report, food packaging plastic in the brain could increase the risks of neurodegeneration, neuroinflammation, and other similar diseases.
![[STUDY] Food Packaging Plastic Entering Brain Could Increase Neurodegeneration Risks, Claim Experts!](https://1734811051.rsc.cdn77.org/data/images/full/426304/study-food-packaging-plastic-entering-brain-could-increase-neurodegeneration-risks-claim-experts.jpg?w=820 "[STUDY] Food Packaging Plastic Entering Brain Could Increase Neurodegeneration Risks, Claim Experts!")
A woman looks at a functional magnetic resonance image (fMRI) showing the effect of Stravinsky's Rite of Spring and Kant's 3rd Critique on the human brain during the Wellcome Collection's major new exhibition "Brains: the mind of Matter" in London on March 27, 2012. AFP PHOTO / MIGUEL MEDINA
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"In the brain, plastic particles could increase the risk of inflammation, neurological disorders, or even neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer's or Parkinson's," warned the study's leading author, Lukas Kenner.
Kenner and other involved health experts conducted their new study using six mice; these rodents were euthanized so that they could harvest their brains.
After studying the mice's brains, they discovered that the MNPs crossed the blood-brain barrier.
Because of this, Kenner and his team are now urging the public to limit exposure and restrict the use of plastic in food packaging.
Plastics in Water Bottles Dangerous Too
In the official press release (via Neuro Science News), Kenner and his colleagues explained that microplastics and nanoplastics (MNPs) could enter the food chain through numerous sources.
One of these is packaging waste. Aside from solid food packaging, MNPs can also enter the body through plastic water bottles.
Health experts claimed that around 90,000 plastic particles from plastic bottles end up being ingested per year.
If you want to learn more details about the dangers of MNPs, you can click this link.
In other news, scientists discovered a new protein that can defeat flesh-eating bacteria. We also reported about the newly-discovered gene, which could lead to reversible and non-hormonal male contraceptives.
For more news updates on health, always keep your tabs open here at TechTimes.
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