Can Kimchi Really Remove Microplastics From Your Body? Scientists Say It Might Be Possible
We’re taking a deeper look at a newly released study and what it claims about the popular fermented vegetable.
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Concerns about plastics in food have been prevalent for decades, but recently it seems like the fear surrounding microplastics has reached a new level. Last month, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), in partnership with the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), announced new measures to identify, target, and test ways to remove microplastics and nanoplastics from the human body. This announcement came after the EPA included microplastics on their Contaminant Candidate List.
Microplastics are most commonly found in food storage containers, cling wraps, food packaging, and bottles. But how harmful are they to your health, and can certain foods remove them from your body altogether, like a newly published study suggests? We’ll discuss all that and more below.
What Are Microplastics?
As the name indicates, microplastics are small pieces or fibers of plastic. Microplastics float around in the air, and as such can find their way into food. Since microplastics come from everyday items, the exact origin of them is tough to pinpoint, though food containers and packaging are the most well-known sources. Microplastics can also be found in different types of food items such as bottled water, beer, and honey. According to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, microplastics are typically less than five millimeters long (the size of a pencil eraser) and may come from widespread environmental contamination, manufacturing practices, and packaging degradation.
You can also find microplastics in the ocean and other bodies of water. Microbeads, a type of intentionally designed microplastics, are also found in health and beauty products like exfoliants, some cleaners, and toothpastes. These tiny plastics can pass through water filtration systems into oceans and may end up in the whole shellfish we eat.
Are Microplastics Harmful?
The use of microbeads has been banned by the U.S., E.U., and other countries like the Netherlands, U.K., Canada, New Zealand, and South Korea. Researchers are still determining the health consequences of microplastics for humans. However, according to the International Food Information Council, the amount of microplastic particles found in our food is low. For example, one bottle of beer averages 28 specks of microplastics, while 1 teaspoon of honey has about 1 speck.
Once microplastics are in your body, however, they can release other compounds that may be potentially hazardous. Some researchers believe that microplastics may lead to harmful effects to your bones, blood vessels, and the brain, and can lead to inflammation, Alzheimer’s disease, and other conditions. As a result, research examining how to get rid of microplastics in the body is currently being conducted.
Is Kimchi the Fix for Microplastics?
In a recently published study from South Korea, researchers from the World Institute of Kimchi determined that the fermented cabbage may help fight and expel the microplastics that end up in our bodies. They closely examined a lactic acid bacterium found in kimchi — known scientifically as Leuconostoc mesenteroides CBA3656 — and determined it bound to approximately 87-percent of nanoplastics it came in contact with when tested in a lab setting.
Next, they tested it in an environment designed to mimic human intestines. In this test, the bacterium interacted with bile salts that can damage bacterial cell walls. This test resulted in a 57-percent binding.
Lastly, the researchers tested the same strain in mice who had no gut bacterium of their own. The mice that interacted with the lactic acid bacterium before being exposed to microplastics had twice as many expelled plastic particles in their feces compared to mice that didn’t receive any of the bacterium.
Since this bacterium is found in kimchi, researchers concluded that consuming kimchi may help get rid of some of the microplastics in human intestines, but more human-based studies are necessary to determine its full validity.
Bottom Line: Kimchi is a delicious gut-healthy food that may or may not help get rid of some microplastics in your body. Although this animal study is a good start, more research is needed to determine if this translates into the human gut, and if kimchi — which has other components and strains of bacteria — shows the same benefits.
