For the new study, researchers used more advanced methodology and found more plastic. \u201cIt is like the difference between looking at the stars with and without a telescope,\u201d lead author Megan Jamison Hart, an environmental science researcher at The Ohio State University, and her adviser, John Lenhart, an environmental engineering professor at the same institution, told Mongabay by email. <\/p>\n
\u201cLike the stars,\u00a0plastics are there either way, but the analytical technique we used let us see a lot more than what previous studies have been able to quantify, similar to seeing more stars with a telescope,\u201d they added.<\/p>\n
They also found that concentrations of nanoplastics \u2014 particles smaller than a micron, or one-thousandth of a millimeter \u2014 were three times higher in bottled water than tap. Overall concentrations of micro and nano plastics (MNPs) were twice as high in bottled water compared with treated tap water. \u00a0<\/p>\n
While microplastics in water have been extensively studied, research on nanoplastics is much more challenging and still poorly understood. <\/p>\n
To analyze the drinking water, the researchers used a technique called optical photothermal infrared spectroscopy to determine the chemical composition of particles smaller than 500 nanometers, or 0.0005 millimeters, roughly the size of a large virus. \u00a0<\/p>\n
Then, paired with scanning electron microscopy, which uses a focused beam of electrons instead of light to image samples in extremely high detail, they were able to determine the size, shape and number of particles smaller than 300 nanometers.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe results suggest that previous studies have underestimated the [micro and nanoplastic] particle concentrations in both treated tap and bottled water,\u201d Jamison added. Nanoplastics \u201caccounted for over 50% of the detected particles in both sample types.\u201d<\/p>\n
Little is known about the health impacts of tiny bits of plastic in drinking water, and it\u2019s hard to study since the particles have become ubiquitous throughout our ecosystems and bodies. Plastic particles have been detected everywhere scientists have looked for them \u2014 in brain tissue<\/a>, bone marrow<\/a>, lungs<\/a>, placenta<\/a>s, breast milk<\/a>, liver<\/a>, testes<\/a> and blood<\/a>. <\/p>\n Some studies have also associated the presence of plastic with colon and lung cancer<\/a> as well as cardiovascular disease<\/a> and hormone interference<\/a>.<\/p>\n \u201cWhile we don\u2019t really fully understand the human health risks associated with nanoplastic exposure, it\u2019s still better to try and mitigate that risk because evidence indicates that they do cause problems, even if we\u2019re not fully aware of what those are yet,\u201d Hart said in a statement<\/a>.\u00a0<\/p>\n Banner image: Trash bags full of discarded plastic. Image by Adil Edin via Unsplash<\/a> (Public domain).<\/p>\n ![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/1774431554_974_a5d6d52d085b07261a3805ebafd898a2b9f15ed2fdb47495c07eb2dae924b0ab.png\")
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