Microplastic Contamination in the Human Gastrointestinal Tract and Daily Consumables Associated with an Indonesian Farming Community

Abstract

Plastic is one of the most abundant pollutants in the environment. As a result of natural physical processes, large plastic waste is degraded into microsized particles (<5 mm) called microplastics. Because of their size, abundance, and durability, microplastics are widely distributed in the environment, contaminating food and water intended for human consumption. The extent of microplastic contamination in the human body is still unclear because there are few studies concerning microplastic contamination in human specimens and, in most studies, data were collected from city dwellers. Despite having the fourth largest population and being the fourth largest plastic waste producer in the world and second largest plastic polluter in the ocean, there are currently no data with respect to microplastic exposure for the Indonesian population. Several studies have reported on microplastic contamination in seafood and freshwater organisms from Indonesia, and it is likely that microplastics have contaminated the gastrointestinal tracts of Indonesians. Using Raman spectroscopy, we detected microplastic contamination in 7 out of 11 analyzed stool samples collected from a farming community in the highland village of Pacet, East Java, Indonesia. Polypropylene (PP) was the most abundant and prevalent type of microplastic observed, and it was found in four of the positive samples with an average concentration of 10.19 microgram per gram of feces (μg/g). Microplastics were also detected at high concentrations in tempeh (soybean cake, a staple protein source for Indonesians), table salts, and toothpaste, which were regularly consumed and used by the study participants. PP was particularly high in table salts (2.6 μg/g) and toothpaste (15.42 μg/g), suggesting that these products might contribute to the gastrointestinal contamination in the studied population. This pilot study indicated microplastic contamination in the rural Indonesian population and in their daily consumables, demonstrating the far-reaching extent of microplastic pollution beyond urban areas.

Microplastic Contamination in Human Stools, Foods, and Drinking Water Associated with Indonesian Coastal Population

“…This number is lower than the previous report for microplastic contamination in the colectomy specimen collected from residents of Northeastern Peninsular Malaysia where microplastic is detected in all 11 specimens they collected [32]. A difference also exists regarding microplastic composition found in the samples, previous works reported PP as the most prevalent type of microplastic in human stools [28,29,31] and colectomy samples [32]. However, the current study detects HDPE as the most common contaminant.…”

“…However, evidence for microplastic exposure in the human body remains very limited. Early evidence for human exposure came from microplastic detection in stool samples which represent contamination in the gastrointestinal tract [28][29][30][31]. It is also found in co-lectomy samples [32], saliva, the surface of skins, and head hair [33].…”

Preliminary Findings of the High Quantity of Microplastics in Faeces of Hong Kong Residents

“…Previous investigations on microplastics in human faeces primarily employed the oxidising agent H 2 O 2 , solely or with other chemicals in the biomass digestion step [ 6 , 8 , 10 ]. Other adopted approaches included digestion in KOH [ 9 ] and nitric acid [ 7 ] to extract microplastics. The performance of different digestion methods on biological samples has been reviewed (e.g., [ 15 , 16 ]), among which the use of alkalis was the most common, while the use of acids could decompose certain plastic types and thus should be avoided if practicable.…”

“…These plastic pieces can be fragmented into smaller sizes, and when smaller than 5 mm, they are commonly referred to as microplastics, which can be found nowadays almost everywhere and in a wide range of food items such as fish, shellfish and table salt, as well as drinking water (e.g., [ 3 , 4 , 5 ]). Microplastics have also been detected in human faeces collected from different populations in Asia, Europe and America, suggesting human ingestion of microplastics and their presence in the gastrointestinal tract [ 6 , 7 , 8 , 9 , 10 ]. However, details on human exposure to microplastics are still far from sufficient.…”

Analisis Kelimpahan Mikroplastik pada Ikan Sapu-Sapu Pterygoplichthys Pardalis (Castelnau, 1855), Air, dan Sedimen di Dua Daerah Ciliwung, Jakarta Selatan

“…Hingga sekarang, pencemaran di Ciliwung memburuk menuju segmen hilir dan kondisi kualitas airnya sudah tidak memenuhi baku kualitas untuk sumber air minum, perikanan, dan usaha perkotaan lainnya (Yudo & Said, 2018). Wibowo et al (2021) melaporkan bahwa mikroplastik telah ditemukan pada feses penduduk desa Pacet, Jawa Timur, dan hal tersebut kemungkinan besar juga terjadi di penduduk Jakarta atau sekitar sungai Ciliwung. Mikroplastik juga mungkin menimbulkan efek negatif terhadap ikan yang menganggu sistem dan organ tubuh ikan hingga rusak dan terluka.…”