Why are Microplastics Harmful, and How to Remove them from Water?

Everyone is aware of the demerits of plastics for the environment. Microplastics are tiny particles of plastic. They range in size from 5 mm to 1 mm and are made up of everything from bottle caps to microbeads. They are everywhere in the environment, even in places where you’d expect to find clean water. Most of them come from broken-down plastic materials, like fishing nets and bottles, flushed into the ocean or lakes through storm drains. Using Brita filters is one of the most effective methods to remove them from drinking water.

These tiny plastic pieces’ effects on wildlife and human health are unclear. Still, it has been established that they can be ingested by animals and enter the food chain when people consume seafood containing microplastic particles.

What are Microplastics?

A microplastic or microbead is a tiny piece of plastic found in water supplies. They come from various sources, including cosmetics, toothpaste, and household cleaners. The primary source is also considered to be microbeads — small, round plastic particles used in facial scrubs and other personal care products. These microbeads are usually less than 5mm (0.2 inches) in diameter, but some can be as large as 100 microns (0.1 mm).

How do they Get into the Water Supply?

Microplastics are bits of plastic, ranging from small particles to large fibers. They can be released when more significant pieces of plastic become worn down over time through wind abrasion or mechanical processes such as washing clothes or sanding wood. These tiny bits get washed down the drain and pollute the waterways if they aren’t filtered out!

Why is it so Hard to Keep Microbeads Out of the Water?

The first step in avoiding microbeads is to understand their source. It turns out they’re everywhere. Due to their small size, these particles can pass through water treatment plants, making it hard for filters to remove them from the water supply.

They make up 90 percent of all marine litter. Still, even landfills are contributing to the problem. When plastic bags break down into smaller pieces, those mini-molecules can be released into the air as gasses or dust particles and then carried by wind or animals into lakes and oceans, where they will float around until they enter the food chain (or get eaten by fish).

So it’s not just the tap water that contains these tiny plastic particles; they are in the air too! But don’t worry—Brita has created filters with an advanced ion exchange resin technology that attracts harmful microbeads and takes them out of your drinking water before you drink it!

How to Filter Microbeads Out?

For those who wish to reduce their exposure to microbeads, filtering is the best way. Brita filters are designed to remove these contaminants from water by physically removing them with filter mediums that sift out these tiny particles. The polyphosphate-based media used in Brita filters help trap microbeads in a matrix of polymers that hold the plastic particles together and prevent their release into the environment.

Conclusion

Filtering microbeads out of your water is a simple and inexpensive way to help the environment and protect your health. Brita filters are one of the most effective ways to remove these tiny particles from tap water, so they’re a great choice if you care about this issue.