Wich synthetic clothes should you replace if you want to live with a less-contaminated brain?

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wischmopp@reddit

A lot of neuroscientists have pointed out that the study you're referring to may significantly overestimate the microplastic contamination due to its methodology. Mass spectometry tends to give false positives for microplastics in fatty samples, and the brain is mostly fat. The researchers tried to reduce the impact of lipids by using a treatment that's meant to saponify triglycerides, but they admit that there were still unknown residuals in the samples. On top of that, various forms of dementia like Alzheimer's disease are associated with lipid droplet accumulation in the brain, which may lead to an even larger overestimation of microplastic content in the 12 brains of dementia patients they analysed. Like, apparently, one dementia patient's brain sample was 5% plastic by weight (50,000 micrograms of plastic per gram). Not 5% of the processed pellet, but 5% of the sample's original weight. I'm going to need a few more replications of this study's results, preferably with larger sample sizes and better methodology, before I can believe that any region in a human brain can be five percent plastic.

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vanyethehun@reddit (OP)

Thanks for the update on this, very much appreciated! I hope after this study this topic (microplastics in the living body) just sinks into our society as a highly important problem.

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Jim-Jones@reddit

We need to stop grinding up plastic. It doesn't make it recyclable, just more dangerous.

Burn it instead of oil.

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IsuzuTrooper@reddit

yeah who needs clean air?

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Jim-Jones@reddit

So your preference is to produce millions of lbs of ground up plastic and at the same time burn oil for power etc? There are huge problems trying to recycle plastic. It only works for a handful of item types, like soda bottles and milk containers. Humans have to sort these out by hand.

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IsuzuTrooper@reddit

my preference is to snort rails of the stuff so it doesn't go to waste

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tmartillo@reddit

God, I love leggings and hate that fucking Koch brothers own Lycra. After Pakistan got decimated by those floods finding 100% cotton anything has gotten so difficult, and only will continue to be so. I miss real sweatshirts and tshirts lasting decades. My partner today is literally wearing a tee from 1991. Socks are a joke now, and have diminished in thickness and quality in the past three years.

Start investing in good work wear for the collapse. Good overalls. A rotation of quality products. Look for gentle preowned on eBay or whatever. It’s worth compared to the shit manufactured now.

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Ok_Main3273@reddit

Plastic and synthetic clothing is bad, I agree.

However, globally, cotton crop covers just 2.4% of the world’s cultivated land but used 4.7% of the world’s pesticides and 10% of insecticides in 2019, according to the International Cotton Advisory Committee. It is one of the world’s most pesticide intensive crops. So there is that.

Or if, like me, you refuse to buy anything made of leather because of the animal suffering and environment damage created by this industry, what type of shoes could you buy? Yep, all made of petrochemicals (because shoes made of canvas and cork don't last long in the rain, I tell you).

Buying less, better quality, and more eco-friendly clothing is good practice but, unless you are ready to pay for organic cotton or walk barefoot, the way we dress will always have a massive impact. Am I not very optimistic, am I?

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FieldsofBlue@reddit

I've had the same dilemma with leather goods and petroleum alternatives. I'd love to have an environmentally friendly alternative to animal hide, but nothing else seems remotely as durable while also breaking down normally when disposed of.

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SebTheCreator@reddit

Rhonda Patrick has created some content on this, here's a video covering what's happening, how to limit our exposure and how to get rid of plastic toxicity https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HTzw_grLzjw

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vanyethehun@reddit (OP)

Wow, thanks! I'll definitely watch it!

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Big_Brilliant_3343@reddit

I hope you don't waste already produced clothing for "less contamination".

In reality, lowering the amount of microplastics that is ingested is very hard as most of it comes from car tires. The larger particles end up on the ground and in the soil, the smaller ends up in the air. Not even a airfilter can filter to any meaningful amount.

It kinda creates a scenario that theres no good answer and we are all just gonna end up with insane amounts of plastic. Its in the water, air and soil in way larger quantities than in clothing.

I am sorry if thats not the answer you wanted to hear. Don't waste things just to feel good about consuming.

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Just-Giraffe6879@reddit

Clothing tends to be 50-100% plastic, much more than the environment is made out of...

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vanyethehun@reddit (OP)

No, you're right, every new purchase has to be meaningful, I can agree with that. I read an another article some time ago about the harmful effects of the syntethic underwares on health - that's why I'm curious what should I replace immediately OR with time where this change is not so urgent.

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traveledhermit@reddit

I have read that the washing of synthetic clothing is a huge contributor to microplastics in the water, but that’s kind of the point of the original commenter. It’s in our air, water and soil, and there’s no realistic way for us to avoid it getting into our bodies as well.

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Big_Brilliant_3343@reddit

Personally, Ive kept it in the back of my mind when I am out shopping. Just one piece of wool/natural fibers that replaces a very worn out synthetic every once in a while.

Otherwise I try to repair it until it gives up. Its my fault I bought petrochemical cloths so I'll deal with them until I cant.

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Bleusilences@reddit

I came here to post that, that's how it get in the food and then in your blade.

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NyriasNeo@reddit

"you want to live with a less-contaminated brain"

You cannot. There is no known method of getting significant amount of micro plastic out of our brains and environment. Whatever is here will always be here. You cannot "de-contaminate" your brain.

Sure, you can try to put less in. But replacing your clothes will not do enough. Micro plastic is in the water we drink. The food we eat. I doubt you can find clean enough sources to eat and drink. And even then, again, won't reduce whatever is already in your brain.

May as well accept and make peace.

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gdanpan@reddit

This is it, the only path worth taking as concerns micro and nano plastics.

Nothing you can do to prevent or decontaminate, either on a personal or global scale.

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Straight-Razor666@reddit

I use only 100% cotton.

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vanyethehun@reddit (OP)

Because of sports activities I'm owning a lot of synthetic, polyester garments.

But I'm not planning to buy new pieces at all. We'll see the rest.

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CalligrapherSharp@reddit

You absorb more chemicals from your clothes when sweating. Plastic is bad, but the dye is harmful on its own. This journalist wrote a book called To Dye For I found helpful.

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Occumsmachete@reddit

There is clothing, towels etc out there that says 100%cotton, yet there is polyester(plastic) to make it soft. Especially from China. Cotton shrinks, but becomes softer the more you wash it. If you have a garment that keeps getting stiffer, it's got plastic in it. I dry everything on low unless it's got that cotton logo on it, and that's getting rarer.

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SaxManSteve@reddit

We still know very little about the primary entry routes of microplastics (MPs) in our bodies. We are absolutely aware that an increasing amount of MPs are accumulating in our bodies, but it's extremely challenging to determine whether the majority of MPs enter our system through digestion, inhalation, or skin contact. Most of the studies I've read argue that the majority of the MPs in our bodies enter via what we eat, but again, this could be wrong; the research is ongoing, and it's not an easy thing to study.

So yes, I think it's generally a good idea to avoid synthetic clothing, but at the same time don't delude yourself into thinking that it's gonna do much. Plastic pollution is a global phenomenon, and one of the main sources of microplastic contamination is actually car tires (The global rate of car ownership is only increasing). When the "plastic rubber" hits the road it creates microplastic dust that's swept up into global air currents, which then deposits MPs atop the pristine snow caps of Mount Everest all the way to the vast stretches of canadian prairies that grow our food. As long as we keep producing more and more plastic, we will have to deal with more and more plastic pollution. It's that simple. And unfortunately, as you most likely already know, there are no signs indicating that we are going to stop plastic production anytime soon. We would rather permanently destroy the ability of our ecosphere to sustain life than temporarily reduce GDP by a couple points.

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NoseyMinotaur69@reddit

Fun fact. Over ~80% of all plastic produced has been since the 50s. And if you are ~30yrs of age, over half of all CO2 has happened in just your lifetime. The same type of statistics for wildlife population die offs/extinctions due to human activity is staggering

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MovinOnUp2TheMoon@reddit

No wonder birth defects and miscarriages are growing more common at scary rates.

I don’t mean to dismiss dangers associated with poisoning the planet, but let’s give credit where credit is due:

The key driver of birth defect increase in the USA is the illegality of abortion. We’ll also see huge spikes in crime in 15 years….

https://theconversation.com/stricter-abortion-laws-may-cause-increased-infant-deaths-2-maternal-and-child-health-researchers-explain-the-data-243881

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NoseyMinotaur69@reddit

Ok, so what's making the fertility rate plummet worldwide? The replacement rate in Japan has gone below 2.2 children. Most of the world is soon to follow. If couples don't have at least 2 kids we can't even sustain current populations.

There is absolutely an underlying issue that completely negates the limited statistics in the article you linked. And its not abortion.

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T1nyJazzHands@reddit

Japan’s fertility rate is also a social and economic thing and not a biology thing.

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SaxManSteve@reddit

There's an important distinction to be made here. The fertility rate is indeed decreasing, but as others have pointed out, this is mainly due to socioeconomic factors (more urbanization, higher cost of living, more education, ect). However, the infertility rate is increasing across the globe, and this is due to increasing levels of pollution.

In the 80s, global infertility was around 1%; now it's at 15%. This means infertility is increasing at a rate of 6% every year. If the rate of increase stays consistent, we should be near 100% infertility by around 2055. That's only 30 years from now....

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NoseyMinotaur69@reddit

Well you are just plain wrong

https://data.worldbank.org/indicator/SP.DYN.TFRT.IN

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MovinOnUp2TheMoon@reddit

Not sure what you’re getting at with the strawman question.

Global fertility declines are generally attributed to social and economic factors (mostly improvements in Female Literacy).

Pollution sucks! Micro Plastics Suck! But air quality in major cities is better now than 150 years ago. It’s still not what’s causing fertility rate drops.

May I recommend a neat clip I just saw (with actual science sources):
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ufmu1WD2TSk

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NoseyMinotaur69@reddit

Lol you really linked a kurzgesagt video. And the strawman link too! ahahahahaha!!

Anyways, I'm gonna go with Shanna H. Swan, PhD, who is an award-winning scientist based at Mt. Sinai (New York, NY). Dr. Swan has published more than 200 scientific papers and has been featured in extensive media coverage around the world.

But you do you boo

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SQ-Pedalian@reddit

As others said, start with your bedding. You spend a lot of hours in bed. I have linen sheets & duvet cover (linen is much more breathable than cotton and regulates temperature), silk pillowcases, and wool pillows/duvet/mattress topper (note: this is wool stuffing so is extremely soft and fluffy in addition to being antimicrobial, breathable, temperature-regulating, and should last many years). My mattress is synthetic but I've got enough natural layers between me and it so I don't stress about it.

My bedrooms are carpeted, and I can't change it because I rent. So I minimize breathing in shedding synthetic carpet dust by vacuuming often with a BAGGED vacuum (if you use bag-less, you release the dust right back out when you empty it) and running an air purifier 24/7.

When doing laundry, air dry your clothes if you can. Air drying wears out fabrics more slowly than machine drying. Wearing out = shedding fibers.

You can find a lot of clothes from natural fibers at thrift stores. I wear almost exclusively natural fibers, and I've built up a large collection of secondhand linen, cotton, wool, cashmere, and silk clothes over the past several years. When I was first starting, I'd go to the thrift store once a month (on a sale day), look through EVERYTHING in the store, and only buy things that were 100% natural fibers in great condition. If you go to a thrift store looking for something specific, you'll never find it. But I've found great cashmere sweaters in the middle of summer.

Accept that you're inhaling and consuming micro/nanoplastics every time you eat, drink, and breathe. I try to minimize the synthetic dust I am breathing in from fabrics in my home, but I accept that I've been exposed my whole life and will continue to be exposed the rest of my life. You need to make peace with exposure you cannot control or the anxiety will eat away at you.

Other tips: don't ever put plastic in the microwave or dishwasher. Store food leftovers in glass or metal storage containers instead of plastic. Use a wooden cutting board. If you use a water filter, get a stainless steel gravity filter like the British Berkefeld that filters the water slowly through ceramic, not a plastic Britta pitcher with plastic filters. Don't use plastic coffee pods (boiling water and plastic are a bad combo)...if you drink tea, drink loose leaf tea steeped with a metal strainer (tea bags release microplastics, plus loose leaf tastes way better). Do what you can but be reasonable about it. Don't go on a huge shopping binge. Just try to find replacements you already have and look for things secondhand as much as possible.

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Pootle001@reddit

It's in the air that you breathe. It's far, far too late.

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SecretPassage1@reddit

There are specials that hold the microplastics shedding from your clothes. You put your clothes in the net then the net in the washing mashine, and you collect the shavings to throw away from within the net, and can hang your clothes to dry.

That's the best you can do. Or go cotton, linen, modal.

Modal with 5% of elastane makes for a breathable material that I love. It's soft, will warm you up somewhat when needed, but also keep you cool when it's getting hot.

Wool to replace acrylic, but will need heavy care and defending against moths. (rotate your pullovers in the freezer for 4 day periods to kill all moth eggs)

Linen is magical to feel warm or cool when needed, but more rigid, and wrinkles easily.

Hope this helps.

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devadander23@reddit

It’s not really from your clothes personally, but the fibers of everybody’s washed into the waste water and then contaminating the environment.

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timespacemotion@reddit

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Bleusilences@reddit

Lol, the real source of contamination are vehicles tires, the dust goes on everything, water, plants and animals. Not only that but you breath that shit everywhere.

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Danjohnson857@reddit

Highly recommended to. Personally I donated all my clothes that were polyester rayon etc all different names for plastic. Can go to a thrift store or buy new clothes primarily cotton, but for colder times wool is the best. Will cost more and try to ethically source it as much as possible. Look at it as investment in health. Also sheets too. All cotton. Silk, bamboo and a few others are options. Basically all natural and ideally ethically sourced and minimal harm producing materials, skip the manmade petroleum garbage

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crystal-torch@reddit

Rayon is actually a “natural” fiber along with Modal and Viscose. They’re made of wood or other fibrous pulp the processing to make it into weavable fiber is very chemically intensive and not great but it’s not shedding micro plastics. Of course if it got polyester in the name then it’s plastic. I put rayon et al in the less desirable category below truly natural fibers personally. I’m a woman with an office job and it’s hard to find clothes so I do wear some of those

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Danjohnson857@reddit

Actually was unaware that rayon is more closely derived from natural materials, I had it mentally lumped in with all the bad ones the plastic, petroleum. So thanks for the info

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crystal-torch@reddit

I try to focus on the big stuff first, bedding and carpets. I only have wool carpet and natural materials for blankets, sheets, and pillows. Thank god I’m not allergic to goose down! I’ve been shopping second hand for many decades and try to only get natural materials, it’s getting harder and harder. Swap dot com has a materials filter which is sort of useful, you still get cotton poly blends if you select cotton but it eliminates the fully synthetic stuff. Finding jeans that are 100% cotton is hard too, Levi’s has some now and so do work wear companies so that’s where I look

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BTRCguy@reddit

And you have to make sure your non-plastics are washed separately, otherwise they would presumably pick up particles shed by the plastics.

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cdrknives@reddit

I have to think dryer lint (and the exhaust) must shit a large amount of microplastics into the atmosphere over the years

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vanyethehun@reddit (OP)

Makes sense. I feel I just jumped into a giant rabbit hole with this.

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FunConsequence404@reddit

I remember reading a study made in the USA which said 50% of microplastics enter the body by breathing, mostly from household dust. In that country and other ones with cold climate, people usually have carpet flooring made of synthetic fibers, which can be released as microplastics. So if that is your case, having a different one might be a good option.

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