Copyright by Dr. Al Sears MD.
Inflammatory bowel disease is one of the most debilitating disorders my patients suffer from. Symptoms of this chronic condition include abdominal pain, diarrhea, rectal bleeding, unwanted weight loss, and severe fatigue. Unfortunately, inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) appears to be a growing problem. Research presented at United European Gastroenterology Week revealed that there could be three times as many people living with IBD than previously thought.1 Although almost 7 million people suffer from IBD globally, the disease remains steeped in mystery. For as long as I can remember, identifying the actual cause of IBD has left scientists completely stumped.
However, thanks to a new study, this could be about to change. In a small-scale study, a team of researchers found that individuals with IBD had larger amounts of microplastics in their stool. The results were published in the journal Environmental Science & Technology.2 Now, I don’t need to tell you that plastic is just about everywhere. But the presence of microplastics is even more widespread than you might think. As the name implies, microplastics are extremely small pieces of plastic. Some are so small that we can’t see them without a microscope. They’re usually made by larger pieces of plastic that break apart over time – sometimes to the point where they almost look like dust. Scientists estimate that the average American consumes enough microplastics to put a credit card together every single week. That amounts to 74,000 particles of microplastic a year. 3 PREVENT IBS BY AVOIDING MICROBEADS While it’s impossible to remove microplastics from the environment – after all, they are everywhere – there are things you can do to reduce your exposure. Here are a couple of tricks I share with my patients.
1.
Micro-
cludes tuna, shark, swordfish, tile-
plastics are so invasive they’re found
fish, and king mackerel. Good choic-
on every beach in the world, as well
es are smaller fish lower down on
as the polar ice caps and deep-sea
the food chain, like herring, sardines,
sediment. Fish ingest them – and
halibut, and haddock. Oceans with
they make their way into our food
the least plastic contamination are
supply. In a shocking recent study,
the South Atlantic and the Mediter-
74% of fish fillets tested contained
ranean Sea. Fish from these regions
microplastics.4Stay away from fish at
include mullet, Spanish mackerel,
the top of the food chain. This in-
red snapper, grouper, and spotted
Choose seafood wisely.
sea trout.
2.
Use a laundry filter: Nearly 65% of today’s clothing contain plastics like polyester, nylon, acrylic, and polyamide. In fact, these fabrics are one of the biggest sources of microplastic pollution on the planet. A single load of laundry can release a million microplastic fibers into the environment.
WWW.FITNESSFASHIONMAGAZINE.COM
