The study questioned how microplastics could impact the heart, and found that these tiny plastic particles, mostly invisible nanoparticles, were in the artery plaque of study participants.


The researchers analysed 257 people who had surgery to clear blocked vessels, looking at the fatty build-up in their carotid arteries which supply blood to the brain, face, and neck. Using two methods, they found evidence of nano-plastics in the plaque of 150 patients, with no evidence of plastics in some 107 patients.