Microplastics: What should you do about them being in your blood?

Orlando Bloom has had an expensive procedure to treat microplastics in his blood. But what should the rest of us do about it?

Microplastics, the tiny plastic particles that are manufactured or broken down from larger plastic objects, are everywhere.

Less than five millimetres in size, these synthetic nano-fragments find their way into the air, soil, food and water supplies.

From there, we breathe in and ingest them so that even our own bodies do not escape contamination.

There’s evidence that they are present in human blood, semen and breast milk – and that has potential implications for health.

It sounds scary and it’s therefore no surprise that microplastics have become an obsession of the wellness brigade, as demonstrated this week by the sight of an A-list celebrity undergoing a costly procedure to expel microplastics from his body.

Microplastics are present in our blood.

The Hollywood actor in question is the Lord of the Rings and Pirates of the Caribbean star Orlando Bloom, 48, who posted on Instagram an image of himself receiving the treatment at Clarify Clinics in London. During the two-hour plasma exchange (or apheresis) treatment, blood is extracted and the plasma cleansed of a range of so-called “forever chemicals”, including microplastics, before being put back into the body with the red blood cells. It is similar to an approach used by the NHS to treat conditions such as myeloma, multiple sclerosis and some types of leukaemia. Experts, though, are sceptical about its efficacy and whether the purging of microplastics is necessary.

“We’ve all got microplastics in our body and have known this for a couple of decades,” says Tamara Galloway, professor of ecotoxicology at the University of Exeter’s department of biosciences.

“We don’t yet know the implications for human health, and microplastics need to be placed in context of the many other things that are harmful to us and that we are exposed to, such as air pollution, metals and solvents.”

The therapy itself could carry its own health risks, according to Dr Dan Baumgardt, a GP and senior lecturer in the school of physiology, pharmacology and neuroscience at the University of Bristol. “Any procedure requiring intravenous cannulation and separation of blood constituents is not going to be risk-free.

Simple cannulation carries a risk of infection, haematoma and extravasation [the leakage of fluid from a vein into the surrounding tissue], and with any procedure it’s important that the risks don’t outweigh the intended benefits.”

Orlando Bloom with wife Katy Perry. Picture: Kevin Mazur/VF25/WireImage for Vanity Fair)

Although wary of the idea of microplastic detoxing, experts are concerned that our use of plastic products over the past 50 years means our exposure to particles is greater than ever. Last year a team of Italian scientists reporting in the New England Journal of Medicine found microplastics to be present in the plaque of arteries in more than half of the 257 patients waiting for surgery. Another, also published in 2024 in the journal Nature Medicine, found that its concentration in brain and liver tissue samples was higher for those who died in 2024 than those in 2016.

“Plastic is a relatively new material and the word describes a group of generic polymers that are not all the same,” Galloway says. “These big-chained molecules often have additives such as plasticisers and dyes, and we don’t know what the impact will be for our health, but we should all try to reduce our exposure.” Here’s what we do know.

HOW DO MICROPLASTICS GET INTO OUR BODIES?

Our exposure to plastic residues is thought to have increased in line with our increased use of plastic in the past few decades.

“The main route of exposure is through food and drink packaging but there’s pretty good evidence that we are also inhaling [microplastic] fibres from residues, textiles, dust and fragments in the air,” Galloway says. Whenever you breathe in dusty air, it probably contains plastic particles, she adds.

WHAT ARE THE IMPLICATIONS FOR OUR HEALTH?

As our use of plastics has increased, so have incidences of conditions such as heart disease and inflammatory bowel disease. However, poor lifestyle habits, such as increased intake of ultra-processed food and declining levels of activity, also play a role in these diseases and while lab studies have shown that microplastic accumulation causes inflammation in human and animal cells, there is as yet no direct link with disease. In 2020 the World Health Organisation confirmed that there was not enough evidence to determine whether consuming or inhaling microplastics posed a risk to human health but did concede research was needed to “address current uncertainties”.

We still don't know the true effect of microplastics.

Dr Sabine Donnai, the CEO of the Viavi longevity clinic in London, says the fact that microplastics can cross the blood-brain barrier, accumulating in brain tissue, is a cause for concern. “Neuroinflammation can potentially contribute to cognitive decline and neurodegenerative conditions like Alzheimer’s,” she says. “And patients with microplastic-laden arterial plaques had 4.5 times the risk of heart attack, stroke or death within three years, which may or may not be linked to microplastics.”

HOW DO WE KNOW HOW MANY MICROPLASTICS ARE IN OUR BODIES?

Some plastic particles leave our bodies but what isn’t known is how many remain, in either the short or long term. “The science to decide how much plastic is in our bodies is not yet sophisticated enough to give us these values,” Galloway says, adding that it is “excruciatingly difficult” even for scientists to determine our body’s microplastic load. “With chemical toxicants you can take a urine or blood sample that will give a pretty good idea of circulating levels. But with microplastics you are looking at tiny solid pieces and some might be passing through the body or embedded in a tissue, so it is hard to tell.”

WE BREATHE THEM IN BUT CAN WE SWEAT THEM OUT?

Plastic microparticles can cross the gut and get into the body, the bloodstream and the lymph glands. There, the particles could be degrading so that you might just have very small amounts or larger chunks left. Our bodies have evolved to keep harmful substances out as much as possible. “Some are generally processed and pass out again through the urine and faeces,” Galloway says. “It is perfectly possible that [the] tiniest pieces could also be sweated out through sweat glands in the body.”

“A high-fibre diet with oats, flaxseed, legumes and greens will help to bind and remove particles via the gut,” Donnai adds.

HOW DO WE REDUCE OUR INTAKE?

We need to use alternatives to plastics as much as possible. Polyethylene (PE), used for making disposable food and drinks packaging, is the most common polymer found in plastic litter and in the Nature Medicine study was found to be present in human brain tissue. “Steps to reduce exposure are positive,” Galloway says. “Reducing the use of single-use plastic food containers and packaging is one way of doing it.”

Avoid microwaving food in plastic.

Donnai says we should avoid heating food in plastic as heat accelerates particle shedding – that includes putting a plastic lid on your takeaway coffee – and use natural fibres for bedding and clothing. “Drink filtered water if you can, as reverse osmosis or carbon filters can drastically reduce plastic load.”

Plastic water bottles should obviously be avoided – a study in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences last year by Columbia University scientists found that a litre of bottled water contained approximately 240,000 tiny pieces of plastic. “Every plastic swap you take helps lighten your body’s toxic load,” Donnai says.

This article originally appeared on The Times.

Originally published as Microplastics: What should you do about them being in your blood?