• keenanpepper@sopuli.xyz
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      1 year ago

      This may be true but I hate the practice of referring to “plastic” as if it’s a single substance. It’s a bunch of different materials that don’t really have that much in common with each other, especially from a health/toxicity standpoint.

      For example, people treat it as common sense that “you shouldn’t burn plastic” because the smoke is “toxic”. For PVC this is totally true, it makes very nasty stuff like dioxin that will poison you. But on the other hand you can burn polyethylene (think milk jug) and it’s no more toxic than burning a candle. Definitely way healthier to breath than wood campfire smoke, for example.

      There’s also such a silly pattern where people learn some chemical might have some effect on the body and suddenly everyone is up in arms about it. For example Bisphenol A in many applications was replaced by the very similar Bisphenol S just so things could be labeled “BPA Free”. BPS probably has similar estrogenic effects to BPA.

      I’d say the moral of the story is be wary of received wisdom about chemical toxicity from people who aren’t chemists.

      • erogenouswarzone@lemmy.ml
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        1 year ago

        Not only BPAs but many chemicals like BPAs can cause birth defects because our bodies think they are estrogen.

        If this worries you, read the books It Starts With the Egg and Grain Brain.

        They both suggest that not only what you eat, but how it’s prepared can affect the health of a child.

        For instance it’s a big no-no, according to It Starts With the Egg, to heat most plastics in the microwave. The heat breaks the plastic down, it can get in your blood, your body will think it’s estrogen, and they don’t even know the full effects of this yet.

        So think about

        • burritos in plastic wrapping,
        • cling wrap on a bowl,
        • reheating leftovers in Tupperware,
        • disposable cutlery

        These chemicals are not just in food:

        • your car’s interior
        • your cell phone case
        • even the clothes on your back, unless they’re 100% pure, untreated, natural fabric, may have been made with these chemicals.
    • lagomorphlecture@lemm.ee
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      1 year ago

      Plastic in general, except that we know and just keep doing it. I’m trying to use less plastic if I can but it’s frickin everywhere. If you want to buy an ear of corn it’s wrapped in plastic as if it isn’t already wrapped in nature’s protection. Seriously people.

    • PeachMan@lemmy.one
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      1 year ago

      This right here. We are undoubtedly the plastic generation. And it’s not letting up any time soon; our kids will be included in this cohort as well. Banning plastic bags in cities is next to useless when everything we eat, everything we drink, and everything we buy is wrapped in plastic.

      • Addfwyn@lemmy.ml
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        1 year ago

        My country is exceptionally bad about this.

        Buy a plastic package of crackers? It will be filled with smaller packages of crackers all wrapped in plastic with a plastic freshener pack for each one. I am not exaggerating. I am not sure I have ever bought something that didn’t have at least two degrees of plastic wrap.

        We did stop giving plastic bags out at cashiers unless requested, but that means shitall when everything you buy is triple-wrapped to begin with.

        • Tak@lemmy.ml
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          1 year ago

          If it makes you feel better a significant amount of microplastics come from tires wearing away on the road.

  • lynny@lemmy.world
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    1 year ago

    Social media. It wasn’t until very recently that people started to realize just how harmful it actually is.

  • Mert@lemmy.ml
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    1 year ago

    Microplastics and PFAS

    No, seriously, these two will kill Earth, and us

  • Jannis@feddit.de
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    1 year ago

    PFAS, which are needed to produce teflon and other nonstick materials. It currently begins to attack attention, but wasn’t really an issue a few years ago. It doesn’t decay naturally so it will be forever in the environment. The EU is even planning to ban all PFAS.

  • Varyk@sh.itjust.works
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    1 year ago

    Probably brake pads. Everyone’s living in cities now, just breathing in brake pad and lead particles.

    Oh and car tires. Just huffing those all day.

  • pH3ra@lemmy.ml
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    1 year ago

    Microplastics and plastic related byproducts, like phtalates (which are connected with a decreased fertility in mammals)
    I’m positive that the long term effects of these substances, that can be found in every link of the food chain nowadays, will be discussed a lot in the future

  • fubo@lemmy.world
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    1 year ago

    Perfluoroalkyls aka PFAS appear to screw with all manner of body functions.

    Since you mention tobacco: It’s worth noting that the smoking/cancer connection was noticed long before peak cigarette smoking in the population. Prior to WWII, lung cancer was considered a rare disease. That changed with the mass marketing of cigarettes.

    • WagnasT@iusearchlinux.fyi
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      1 year ago

      There’s a couple studies showing that even though your body can’t process and remove PFAS and it just keeps accumulating, if you donate blood regularly you reduce the amount in your body by a bit each time. There are other slight health benefits to donating blood and lots of places will pay you for it. So if you can reduce your PFAS intake and donate blood you can slowly get rid of it. I use arch linux btw.

  • 0xEmmy@lemmy.ml
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    1 year ago

    Fossil fuels.

    Things have slowly drifted from “we might wanna consider doing something before this becomes a problem” to “we need an immediate and concrete plan” to “anything short of immediate and drastic action is killing and will continue to kill people” over the course of the last decade or two.

  • Ghostc1212@sopuli.xyz
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    1 year ago

    Microplastics are the new lead, and screens are the new tobacco, in my opinion. Overuse of sugar in processed foods is the new version of how they’d cut food with inedible stuff like sawdust back in the day.

    • ComradeR@lemmy.ml
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      1 year ago

      My mom become an avid anti-plastic person after watching videos and reading things about the damages that microplastics do to the health, nature and the planet. She does everything she can to avoid using plastic things!

      • z3rOR0ne@lemmy.ml
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        1 year ago

        Care to elaborate? Always looking for new tips to cut back on my personal plastic use.