ACC: Microplastic Exposure Tied to Chronic Disease Prevalence

WEDNESDAY, April 2, 2025 (HealthDay News) — Microplastic exposure may increase the risk for chronic diseases, according to a study presented at the annual meeting of the American College of Cardiology, held from March 29 to 31 in Chicago.

Sai Rahul Ponnana, from the Case Western Reserve School of Medicine in Cleveland, and colleagues investigated the association between microplastic concentration in coastal regions and the prevalence of high blood pressure, diabetes, stroke, and cancer in U.S. coastal census tracts. The analysis included 555 coastal census tracts located within 200 m of the shoreline from large bodies of water.

The researchers observed positive correlations between microplastic concentrations and high blood pressure (r = 0.24), diabetes (r = 0.3), and stroke (r = 0.26), while a negative association was seen for cancer (r = −0.16). These associations were significant for high blood pressure (F = 7.351), diabetes (F = 12.07), stroke (F = 8.798), and cancer (F = 3.986) in an analysis of variance. Microplastic concentration was a significant predictor of stroke prevalence, suggesting higher concentrations increase stroke risk, based on eXtreme Gradient Boosting modeling.

“The environment plays a very important role in our health, especially cardiovascular health,” Ponnana said in a statement. “As a result, taking care of our environment means taking care of ourselves.”

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