Micro-nano Plastics: Impact on Gastrointestinal System

Abstract

Aside from the numerous technological advantages of living in the “plastic age,” the sheer abundance of plastic products, their unsustainable use and disposal, and their great durability in the environment all contribute to pollution dangers, raising significant environmental and public health concerns (Fackelmann and Sommer 2019). Growing concerns have been raised that waste management needs to be equipped to deal with the vast quantities of plastics being produced and disposed of via the several available channels (Rajpal et al. 2024). Microplastics (MPs) are tiny fragments of plastic released into the environment when consumer or industrial plastic goods are discarded or degraded. Microplastics are categorized based on their origin into two distinct groups. The first ones are primary microplastics. These are manufactured in shapes such as pellets, nurdles, and microfibers for cosmetics, toothpaste, pharmaceutical drugs, and textiles. Secondary microplastics are the second category of microplastics. These originate when larger plastic materials are fragmented into tinier pieces in nature (Weber et al. 2022).