How to breathe in fewer microplastics in your home

4 hours ago

Microplastics from synthetic fabrics, furnishings, and carpets concentrate in indoor air, potentially leading to inhalation of hundreds of thousands to millions of particles annually.
Inhalation may be the primary route of microplastic exposure, with indoor concentrations up to eight times higher than outdoors, partly due to people spending about 90% of their time inside.
Reducing exposure involves behavioral changes, such as washing clothes less frequently, using washing machine filters, drying clothes outside, and opting for natural-fiber clothing and furnishings.
Vacuuming with HEPA filters and wet cleaning can help remove settled microplastics, but may resuspend particles temporarily; wearing masks during cleaning and ensuring good ventilation is advised.
Air filters with multiple stages can effectively capture microplastics, while air conditioning may increase their distribution; health impacts include inflammation and organ accumulation, particularly from fibrous particles.

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