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. 2022 Nov 17;14(22):4857.
doi: 10.3390/nu14224857.

Microplastic in Food and Water: Current Knowledge and Awareness of Consumers

Affiliations

Microplastic in Food and Water: Current Knowledge and Awareness of Consumers

Klaudia Oleksiuk et al. Nutrients. .

Abstract

In recent years, the widespread of microplastics in the food chain and environment became a topic of much research. This article focused on the knowledge and awareness of people with higher education levels-mostly young ones. The aim of this study is to analyze to what extent consumers know about and are aware of the source of microplastics, the level of exposure, and potential health hazards connected to the contamination of food and water with microplastics. The test group, consisting of 410 people, is mostly able to correctly characterize what microplastics mean and knows its sources. A majority of the group is aware of potential presence of microplastics in water; however, the knowledge about contamination of other elements of the environment seems to be gradually lowering. The majority of the people taking part in the research know that microplastic might be present in foods, and they are aware that after entering the human body, it might accumulate in internal organs. Moreover, when asked about potential health hazards, the group chose mostly tumors and gastrointestinal disorders, while disorders of the reproductive system were chosen less frequently. Consumers' knowledge regarding the sources and health hazards of microplastics seems to be more common among women, in groups living in cities and among people who studied physics-related subjects and medicine.

Keywords: consumers; food; knowledge; microplastic; water.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors state that they have no conflict of interest.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
The place of the survey.
Figure 2
Figure 2
Respondents’ answers to “What are microplastics?” (%).
Figure 3
Figure 3
Respondents’ answers to “What is the source of so-called primary microplastics?” (%).
Figure 4
Figure 4
Respondents’ answer to “In what elements of the environment it is possible to find microplastics?” (%).

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