Protect Your Kids From Plastics

I am an engineer by trade.  I still keep up with the community and the latest research.  There is a lot of research in plastics right now.  As a society, we are looking for replacements and the long term health issues associated with plastics.

Over the past year a lot of new research has come out about how plastics decompose, what that does to our environment, and how it affects our health. 

To really oversimplify the issue, I will sum up the research this way: plastics are bad.  They are bad all the way through the supply chain.  Bad for our health and bad for the planet.  

The worst offenders are microplastics.

What are microplastics?

Imagine there is forgotten food in the fridge.  It starts to decompose.  As it decomposes, it releases spores and fumes that start to trigger other food items to spoil.  It smells bad too.

Microplastics are the non-organic equivalent to the spores and fumes.  As plastic decomposes, it sheds microscopic pieces of plastic into the surrounding environment.  

It is one thing when the plastic phone case sheds microplastics in your pocket, and another one entirely when the baby bottle sheds billions of microplastics in your baby’s milk.

What releases microplastics?

Everything made of plastic sheds microplastics during use and then they decomposes into microplastics when their useful life is over. 

Microplastics are released most often when plastic is warm and submerged.  

That means the plastc teether is releasing more microplastic in your child’s mouth when in use than it is when sitting on the coffee table.

In our homes, a lot of our microplastic exposure comes from food prep.  Which means we are ingesting microplastics at an alarming rate.

How are microplastics bad for us?

On a grand scale, plastics and microplastics are particularly bad for the environment because they don’t actually degrade.  They just get smaller.

Wildlife eat the plastic with their food.  As more and more of their diets are composed of plastic they can’t digest, they starve more and more.  They receive fewer nutrients.  Lack of nutrition snowballs up the food chain, and everyone needs to eat more as a result.  Some animals die prematurly from plastic overconsumption.

Plastics also contain endocrine disruptors that can push girls into puberty prematurely, and they can lower IQ and raise BMI.  They are also full of carcenogins that can cause long term health affects. 

How can I protect my family?

Don’t use plastic products.  

I know, easy to say and impossible to do.

Plastic is everywhere.  It covers our floors and countertops, holds our food, is in our clothes, and is used to make every key of the keyboard I am using to type this.  Every day I use plastic to brush my teeth, make phone calls, stir food, and write notes. 

It is impossible in our current society to eliminate plastic entirely.  We can seriously reduce our plastic reliance by carefully choosing what plastic we allow in our homes, and reducing as much as possible.

If you can, you should support legislation that reduces single use items and regulates plastics.

Non-plastic items are expensive.  What should I prioritize?

The easiest big impact thing you can do is replace all plastics that touch food or drink.  Get glass baby bottles instead of plastic.  Switch out your plastic tupperware for glass or steel and get a reusable water bottle.  Stop using plastic bags to hold food and get something reusable.

Glass and stainless steel items last longer than plastic, so you will save money in the long run while keeping your family safe.  

We used glass bottles and stainless steel sippy cups.  They are durable and hold up to temperature changes and falls on concrete with no problem.  If you don’t like the glass bottles, opt for silicone ones.

The most expensive switch is flooring.  Carpets and vinyl floors are essentially all plastic.  We have studies about how kids who grow up with vinyl floors have have serious health risks for babies even when you adjust for income level.  

If you have any control over your flooring options, pick something natural.  Porcelain or stone tiles and hardwood floors are all great options.  

As things wear out, try to replace anything you have long exposure to or that are high use with something not plastic based.  When your polyester clothes wear out, get cotton or wool to replace it.  If you wear through an area rug, get a wool one to replace it.  But don’t bother finding a plastic free vacuum cleaner since you aren’t exposed to it every day.

Take your time and move slowly.  Soon you will have more natural items than plastic ones in your house.

What is your favorite plastic to non-plastic switch.  Let me know in the comments below.