Adolescents in Semarang, Indonesia, ingest an average of 47.7 microplastic particles daily from eating seafood, especially bivalves like blood cockles and mussels, because these species are highly...
Mechanism
Synthesis from 1 study
Teens in Semarang eat a lot of shellfish that have tiny plastic bits inside them. When they swallow these shellfish, the plastic pieces pass through their gut and get absorbed into their bodies. This is why they end up with more plastic in their system than other groups.
Most probable mechanism
When people eat shellfish like cockles and mussels that have tiny plastic pieces inside them, those plastic pieces pass through the digestive system and get absorbed into the body through the gut lining, leading to a higher number of plastic particles in the body.
Microplastic particles present in bivalve tissues are ingested during consumption of raw or minimally cooked seafood.
Particles smaller than 10 micrometers pass through the intestinal epithelial barrier via paracellular transport or endocytosis.
Once absorbed, particles remain in the gastrointestinal tract or enter systemic circulation, contributing to total daily microplastic burden.
Evidence from Studies
Supporting (1)
Community contributions welcome
Assessing Age‐Specific Variability in Microplastic Intake Through Seafood Consumption: A Case Study in Central Java, Indonesia
Contradicting (0)
Community contributions welcome
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