BERLIN (AP) — Scientists in Austria say they have detected tiny pieces of plastic in human stool samples for the first time, but experts caution the study is too small and premature to draw any credible conclusion.
Researchers from the Medical University of Vienna and the Environment Agency Austria said Tuesday that their pilot study found so-called microplastics in all samples taken from eight volunteers in Europe, Russia and Japan.
Microplastics, defined as pieces smaller than 5 millimeters, have been found in water, animals and food in the past. Experts say it's not surprising that microplastics would be found in human samples too.
Biologist Martin Wagner of the Norwegian University of Science and Technology said the study isn't representative and "in the worst case all the plastic they found is from the lab."
