Researchers from South Korea and Greenpeace East Asia have found that 90 percent of table salt sold around the world are contaminated with microplastics.
After analyzing salt from 21 countries in Europe, Asia, North and South America, and Africa, a new study published in Environmental Science and Technology found microplastics in 36 out of 39 brands.
Microplastic density was highest among Asian brands, especially those from Indonesia. The only three salts free from plastic were those from Taiwan, China, and France.
Researchers sampled three types of salts and found that sea salt had the highest microplastic levels, followed by lake salt, and then rock salt.
With particles often less than 5 millimeters in size and many the same color as salt, and they are barely noticeable.
The study estimates that the average adult consumes 2,000 microplastics a year through salt.
Scientists have yet to determine how harmful microplastics are to our bodies, but so far, experiments on mice haven't exactly brought good news. (Next Animation via Reuters)
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