Microplastics in drinking water present 'low' risk: WHO

Plastic pollution has led to worries about the dangers of accidentally consuming microplastics.
But a recent study by the World Health Organization suggests the risk the microplastics pose to human health is "low".
Our Choi Jeong-yoon has the details.
On this Hawaiian beach, numerous plastic particles can be found as a man scoops up ocean water with a sieve.
These are microplastics fragments less than 5 millimeters in length. They are found not only in oceans and rivers but also in tap water and bottled water.
Experts from the World Health Organization say microplastics are everywhere.
"So there is absolutely no doubt that microplastics are found in drinking water, and indeed freshwater, and water sources that lead into drinking water, like ground water. The studies we looked at, many of them actually characterized the particles and confirmed they were microplastics, so we are ingesting them."
In June, another environmental group reported that a person absorbs the same amount of plastic as one credit card every week through microplastics in water and shelfish.
Amid growing concerns over microplastics in our body, the WHO released a report on Thursday.
The report says the main source of microplastics in drinking water comes from wastewater effluent. And microplastics in bottled water come from the bottling and packaging process.
However, it said that plastic particles contained in drinking water at current levels present a 'low' risk to human health.
"Now, when we think about the potential risks that they pose and what pathways, there is an issue of a particle, an inert particle, so plastic doesn't chemically react, coming into the body and possibly causing harms in organs and tissues. And the main message is that the vast majority of microplastic would pass harmlessly through the body."
The WHO says more research is needed to reassure people about microplastics. Further studies need to focus on specific problems, and how these particles interact with the human body leading to possible toxicity.
Choi Jeong-yoon, Arirang News.