Microplastics Could Be Weakening Your Bones, Research Suggests

Recent research published in Osteoporosis International suggests that microplastics may contribute to the rising global incidence of osteoporosis by disrupting bone health. The study reviewed 62 scientific articles involving laboratory and animal experiments, finding that microplastics interfere with bone marrow stem cells responsible for maintaining and repairing bone tissue. Specifically, microplastics stimulate osteoclast formation—cells that break down bone—while reducing cell viability, inducing premature aging, altering gene expression, and triggering inflammation. This imbalance accelerates bone degradation, weakening bone structure and increasing fracture risk. Animal studies further indicated that microplastic accumulation lowers white blood cell counts, signaling impaired bone marrow function, and leads to deterioration of bone microstructure and abnormal cell formations. These effects were severe enough to interrupt skeletal growth in animals. The research team, led by Rodrigo Bueno de Oliveira at the State University of Campinas in Brazil, is now conducting further studies on rodents to better establish the link between microplastic exposure and bone deterioration. They aim to clarify microplastics as a