Who Let Them Cook: How Microplastics Mess with the Gut and Cognitive Health

It’s that time of the year. Your family has gathered from far and wide for the biggest feast of the year. A foodie’s paradise. Aren’t you hungry? There’s going to be delicious, well-seasoned turkeys, creamy, savory mashed potatoes, the sweetest cornbread, and hundreds of microplastics…microplastics? You heard right—microplastics will be on the menu for the holidays, and for any other meal that you order. Before you take your next bite, let’s talk about how these tiny, unappetizing products may be making their way into your holiday dinner and how they can harm not just your gut—but your cognitive health too.

Previously, our blog has covered how long term exposure to microplastics can harm the gut, which you can read about here. In addition, the link between the gut microbiome and brain has been long established, which you can read about in our blog post here and is the main focus of Dr. Church’s research. So, it should come as no surprise that microplastics don’t just stop at hurting your gut—they can also negatively impact your cognitive health.

How does microplastics affect cognitive health through the gut?

How specifically do these microplastics affect the brain and wreck havoc? Well, these unappetizing guests don’t just stop at the gut: they can sneak through the bloodstream through the digestive track and enter the brain, too, causing all sorts of cognitive problems. A recent study showed that tiny pieces of polystyrene plastic (PS-MPs) can pass through the brain’s protective barrier and build up in brain tissue after long exposure. This causes inflammation, damages dendritic spines (which are needed for memory and learning), and overall weakens the connections between brain cells.

So why does this matter? 

Well, if the thought of microplastics accumulating in your brain doesn’t scare you, this should: microplastics were found to have neurotoxic effects in mice. In particular, orally ingested LDPE-MPs (low-density polyethylene microplastics) were observed to cause disturbances in the gut-microbiota. This led to these mice exhibiting neurotoxicity by inducing dysregulation in cholinergic signaling (a way that brain cells use to communicate with each other), which was linked to oxidative stress, anxiety-like behaviors, and cognitive impairment. Thus, these tiny particles, which can be found all over your Thanksgiving table, harm brain function and are linked to cognitive diseases like Alzheimer’s.

So what can you do to keep these microplastics away from your delicious dinner? For starters, you could read our other blog posts, where we offer tips on how to reduce your microplastic exposure. In addition, research suggests that ingesting probiotics can help restore a healthy gut-microbiome and reverse the effects of microplastics. By being mindful of microplastics, you can protect your gut, support your brain, and make sure your mind is in good enough cognitive health to get seconds of that delicious turkey feast.