Microplastics infiltrate everywhere: in the air we breathe, the water we drink, the foods we consume. Their presence has already been detected in the blood, the lungs, the brain and even the human placenta. However, a gesture as common as chewing a chewing gum has so far ever been studied as a direct exposure source. A team of researchers from the University of California in Los Angeles (UCLA), in collaboration with the Marc program of the University of Hawaii, has just filled this gap.
Chewing gum: a banal habit with unsuspected effects
Long perceived as a simple sweet pleasure or a tool against stress, chewing gum has established itself as a mass consumption product. Invented in 1869 in the United States by Thomas Adams, he was originally composed of shield, a natural resin extracted from the Sapotillier. Today, it is mainly made from oil -derived synthetic polymers, used for their elastic and durable properties. This industrial transformation was accompanied by an increasing opacity on the real composition of chewing gums. It is often found summarized by the vague term “base erase” on labels.
Each year, more than 374 billion chewing gums are sold worldwide. In the United States, an individual would chewing around 160 to 180 per year. This daily gesture, however, exposes much more than sugar or sweeteners. According to the results presented during the American Chemical Society Congress in San Diego, each gram of chewing gum releases on average 100 microplastic in saliva. Some products reach up to 600 particles per gram. A simple gum of 3 grams could thus release up to 1,800 fragments.
At this rate, a person chewing 180 chewing gum per year could ingest around 30,000 microplastics only by this way. “” Our goal is not to alarm people “, Tempers Sanjay Mohanty, principal researcher of the study. But these figures underline how banal habit can become an invisible source of daily exposure.
Natural or synthetic gum: same fight
The study tested ten chewing-gum brands-five synthetic, five naturally-all marketed in the United States. Against all expectations, the results show that the two types of gums release similar quantities of microplastics. Lisa Lowe, doctoral student at UCLA and the study co-author, admits to having been surprised by this discovery.
The process is strictly mechanical. Chewing is enough to detach particles. After only two minutes, most of the plastics are already released. After eight minutes, 94 % of the particles are released. No chemical reaction with saliva is at the origin of the phenomenon, explains Mohanty. “” It is not saliva that dissolves them, it is abrasion ».
We know well the polymers identified in the samples: polyolefins, polystyrenes, polyacrylamides, or even polyethylene terephtlate – current plastics, present in bottles or bags, even tires. Natural gums contain just as much.
A regulatory vagueness and a lack of transparency for our chewing gum
A worrying point therefore remains the total lack of transparency of the industry. The packaging does not precisely indicate the ingredients constituting the eraser base, being content with a generic term: “Gum base”. Sanjay Mohanty stresses that ” No one will tell you the ingredients ».
This lack of transparency is not illegal. In the United States, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) authorizes the use of the gum base as an “protected” ingredient whose formulation can remain confidential. And this as long as the components used remain approved individually. As a result, manufacturers are not required to disclose the exact nature of the polymers used.
This regulatory vagueness also complicates the work of researchers, who cannot compare the compositions announced to the results of the analysis. Above all, it prevents consumers from making informed choices on what they introduce into their mouths. In the case of so -called “natural” gums, this opacity raises additional doubts about their real safety.
Finally, certain plastics identified, such as the polyethylene terephtlates (PET), should not appear in the composition of the gums. Dr. David Jones, from the University of Portsmouth, quoted by Cnnjudge this presence suspicious and does not exclude laboratory contamination. “” This does not call into question the overall observation “, He nuances. He thus recalls that any plastic subjected to a physical constraint ends up freeing particles.
Microplastic: the invisible scourge
Microplastics are today everywhere, including in human tissues. Inhaled or ingested daily, these plastic fragments, often from packaging, textiles or consumer products, enter our body by several ways: food, water, air or skin contact. In 2023, estimates reported that each individual could absorb between 100,000 and 250,000 plastic particles per year.
We detected their presence in the blood, the lungs, the liver, the brain, the testicles, breast milk, and now in a even more worrying way, in the placenta. A study published in February 2024 in Toxicological Sciences By researchers from the New Mexico University has revealed concentrations of up to 790 micrograms of microplastics per gram of placental fabric. Polyethylene, used in bags and bottles, is the most frequently identified particle.
These discoveries strengthen fears about the potential effects of these pollutants on human health. Although clinical studies in humans still lack, research in vitro And animals suggest risks. Among them are inflammation, cellular damage, hormonal alterations and development disturbances. Certain hypotheses evoke links with chronic diseases such as inflammatory intestine diseases or fertility disorders.
Source : ACS
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