Tea Bag

Tea Bag

 

In a study conducted in the Netherlands, the results of which were announced in March this year, microplastics were found in human blood for the first time. In the blood samples in the study; PET plastic widely used in beverage bottles, food packaging and clothing production, polystyrene (PS) used in packaging food and household products, and polyethylene (PE) used in plastic bags were detected.

Assoc. Dr. Meral Yurtsever (Sakarya University Environmental Engineering Faculty Member) investigated whether microplastics are transferred to the tea when brewing with tea bags as part of the TÜBİTAK (118Y515) project.

Yurtsever, who came across microplastics in some tea bags in his study, said, "I have seen 13 thousand microplastic particles pass into our beverage, namely tea, on average. With the technique I used here, we can detect microplastic particles up to 3 micrometers in size. In other words, up to 13 thousand microplastics between 3 micrometers and 5 millimeters in tea. We can say that the microplastic has passed." said.

PLASTIC ADDITIVE IN 11 TEA BAG SPECIFIED TO BE MADE OF CELLULOSE
Explaining that he examined 11 cup bags and 11 teapot bags of different brands, known as cellulose, in the research, Yurtsever said that all of the teapot bags were made of tissue with plastic addition, 4 of the cup bags were made of 100 percent cellulose, and 7 of them contained plastic. Yurtsever said, "I saw that all of the 11 teapot bags I examined were made of plastic and these plastics were polyester, polypropylene, and polyethylene." he said.

YURTSEVER ALSO GIVEN THE FOLLOWING WARNINGS ABOUT THE STEPS THAT HAVE BEEN COMING ON THE MARKET RECENTLY:

"There is also a new generation of trendy tea bags, but stick teas, which I call tea bags, are also called pencil teas. When we look at them, they look like a stick and have holes in them, and there is tea in them. When we analyzed this, we saw that it was covered with polypropylene (PP) material. There is also a plastic release from this to the tea we drink."

Emphasizing that none of the properties of plastics change even if they are divided into small pieces, Yurtsever stated that swallowed or contacted microplastics cause toxic effects.

WHICH TEA SHOULD YOU PREFER?

Recommending the use of bulk tea instead of tea bags, Yurtsever said, "It would be better for the consumer to turn to products that do not actually contain much packaging. We can prefer bulk teas. Tea bags, okay, their practicality cannot be denied, but they can really have effects and burdens on the environment and people. Not only in terms of microplastic pollution. When we think of additional bags, labels, staples or glue, cotton thread, etc. used in tea bags, we produce extra garbage, but when we use bulk tea, we take it directly and brew it in a teapot." said.

"SINGLE USE PRODUCTS MUST BE LEFT"

Yurtsever drew attention to the need to abandon the use of single-use plastics and concluded his words as follows:

"I think that disposable products should be completely abandoned. In fact, we need to leave it from now on, because even in its current form, we spread, scatter and distribute enough plastic in our environment. Even as it is, it is impossible for nature to clean itself. When we think in the long term, the bill of our current pollution is actually billed to future generations. That's why we need to quit. Plastics are not something that disappears, dissolves, dissolves in the environment, but something permanent. Therefore, there is a possibility that many of them can remain in nature for centuries without deterioration. We should leave as much as we can. We should especially start with disposable products."

Moreover; According to the research and published report by McGill University; A single brewed tea bag leaks 11.6 billion microparticles and 3.1 billion nanoparticle plastics into the water. According to experts, these figures are much higher than plastic particles found in other foods and beverages, including water sold in plastic bottles.

! The most striking result of the study was the fact that a citizen who regularly consumes tea bags consumes 5 grams of plastic a week without his knowledge.

 

                                                                                        Founder of the News: Abdullah Gündoğdu
                                                                                       (Metal Construction Department Head)
                                                                                       Organized by Kübra Öztürk (Environmental Engineer)