Editorial methodology
The MicroPlastics Research Desk
Every article is written and fact-checked by the MicroPlastics Research Desk, a small in-house editorial team. We translate peer-reviewed research into reader-friendly explainers and verify every health claim against the original source paper.
What the desk covers
- Peer-reviewed environmental-health research summarisation
- Brand-by-brand product comparisons grounded in polymer disclosure
- Citation accuracy against original source papers
- Plain-English explainers for YMYL consumer-health topics
- Plastic chemistry, food-packaging migration, water filtration
How we work
The MicroPlastics Research Desk is the in-house editorial team behind every article on this site. We are not credentialed clinicians; we are a small editorial team focused on translating peer-reviewed environmental-health research into clear, accurate, citation-grounded consumer guides. Every health claim is verified against the original source paper. Every brand comparison cites the polymer disclosure or the test data we relied on. When a claim is contested in the literature, we say so. When the data is too thin to make a recommendation, we say that too. We do not accept paid placements, sponsored mentions, or undisclosed affiliate priority. For corrections, source disputes, or to suggest a topic, reach the desk via the contact page.
- Verification: Every health claim is checked against the original peer-reviewed source paper, not summaries. We do not cite summaries of summaries.
- Disclosure: We name the polymer, the study, and the limitation in every brand comparison. Contested findings are flagged as contested.
- Independence: No paid placements, no sponsored mentions, no undisclosed affiliate priority. The MicroPlastics iOS app is our only product.
- Corrections: Submit a source dispute or correction via the contact page. Substantive corrections are made within 5 business days with a visible last-reviewed date update.
All Research Desk articles
253 articles in the MicroPlastics research library, newest first.
August 17, 2026 · 12 min read
PFAS in Cooking Oil: When the Plastic Doesn't Come From the Bottle
A third-party test found PTFE — a fluoropolymer, and therefore a PFAS — suspended in an olive oil whose squeeze bottle is not made of PTFE. That mismatch points upstream at processing equipment rather than packaging. Plus the regulatory science on why fat extracts more from plastic than any other food.
Read articleJuly 2, 2026 · 10 min read
Does Graza Olive Oil Have Microplastics? The Squeeze Bottle Question
Updated August 2026: an independent LDIR test reported 2 microplastic particles per millilitre in Graza EVOO — one PTFE, one rubber. PTFE is not the squeeze bottle material, which points at processing equipment rather than packaging. Plus why fat extracts more from plastic than water does.
Read articleAugust 16, 2026 · 11 min read
Is Owala Non-Toxic? The Body Is Fine — the Answer Is in the Lid
The insulated body is stainless steel and inert, and the BPA-free claim is genuine rather than a BPS substitution. The microplastics question lives entirely in the lid: a Tritan spout and a polypropylene flip mechanism, where cap abrasion measures 131 particles per litre after a single opening.
Read articleAugust 15, 2026 · 13 min read
Is It Plastic? Every Material in Your Kitchen, Answered
Nineteen of the thirty materials in an ordinary kitchen are plastic, and most people can name about six. Polyester and nylon are plastic. Melamine is plastic. PLA is plastic despite the compostable label. Silicone is not, quite — it is a siloxane. And "bamboo fibre" tableware is usually melamine resin with a plant filler.
Read articleAugust 14, 2026 · 11 min read
Think Dirty vs Yuka: How the Two Scanners Differ — and the Question Neither One Asks
Yuka scores 0–100 off its single worst ingredient; Think Dirty scores 0–10 and leans natural. Yuka carries ~2M products against Think Dirty’s ~1,200 brands. But neither rates synthetic polymers, because inert plastics are invisible to toxicological hazard criteria by design — so a formula can score well on both and still be built out of plastic.
Read articleJuly 15, 2026 · 14 min read
Tritan Plastic: What It Actually Is, Whether It's Safe in Hot Water, and What Really Sheds
Tritan is Eastman’s copolyester of DMT, CHDM and TMCD — no bisphenol anywhere in it, a glass transition near 120 °C, and FDA clearance to 100 °C. The estrogenic-activity claims were found false under the Lanham Act in 2014. And when researchers counted particles from reusable bottles, the source was the screw cap: 131 per litre after one opening, 242 after eleven.
Read articleAugust 13, 2026 · 12 min read
Microplastic Testing: What a Lab Can Actually Measure — and Why "None Detected" Isn't Clean
Micro-FTIR stops seeing particles around 10 micrometres and micro-Raman around 0.5. Much of the research linking microplastics to human tissue sits below both limits — so a clean water result is a statement about the instrument, not about your water. What labs measure, what mail-in kits deliver, and the test that does not exist at any price.
Read articleAugust 12, 2026 · 11 min read
Nail Dust Is Microplastic — and Nail Polish Has a Legal Exemption Until 2035
Acrylic is the single most common polymer in nail salon air — 27% of particles, at an estimated 67,567 inhaled a year. And under the EU microplastics restriction, nail products got the longest transition of any category: 17 October 2035, with a "This product contains microplastics" label required from 2031.
Read articleAugust 11, 2026 · 10 min read
Do Contact Lenses Shed Microplastics? The 2026 Study Points at the Blister Pack
A June 2026 study analysed the whole routine — new lenses, worn lenses, blister packs, cases and solutions — and found microparticles in every sample type. Then the polymer fingerprints said most of them did not come from the lens. The part you cannot change turns out not to be the part that matters most.
Read articleAugust 10, 2026 · 9 min read
Can You Microwave Rubbermaid? The 30-Second Rule Nobody Follows
Rubbermaid says reheating only, and defines it as a short peak: "maintaining temperatures at 165°F or higher for more than 30 seconds is considered cooking, and is outside the intended use of these products." The twist is that the premium Brilliance line is capped at 165°F while the budget TakeAlongs handles 212°F.
Read articleAugust 10, 2026 · 11 min read
Nanoplastics Crossed a Placenta Model and Changed Hormone Output: The 2026 Study, Carefully
Four of five polymers crossed a three-layer human placental model within 72 hours, and steroid hormone output changed — polystyrene mainly cutting estrogen. What van Boxel et al. actually found, the five things a dish of cells cannot tell you, and what it means if you are pregnant.
Read articleAugust 10, 2026 · 12 min read
Does Neutrogena Have Microplastics? All 140 Published Formulas Checked (2026)
38 of 140 formulas contain a solid polymer — but the concentration is the story. Skincare 25%, makeup 37%, haircare 0%, and 12 of the 18 skincare hits are Hydro Boost alone. The line sold on water and weightlessness is two-thirds of the problem, because the texture IS the polymer.
Read articleAugust 9, 2026 · 8 min read
Can You Microwave a Solo Cup? Solo's Own Answer Is No
No, and Solo says so plainly — its cups are "not intended for microwave usage or hot food/beverages". Red cups are #6 polystyrene, which softens around 170°F, below the temperature of hot coffee. Every product line by material, plus the one Solo line that is actually microwavable.
Read articleAugust 9, 2026 · 9 min read
Can You Microwave Ziploc Bags? The Official Answer, and the One It Leaves Out
Yes for defrosting and reheating, no for cooking — only Zip’n Steam is cleared for that, and the word "microwaveable" on the box is doing real work. What SC Johnson actually states, why fatty food is the hazard nobody mentions, and the particle question FDA clearance was never designed to cover.
Read articleAugust 9, 2026 · 10 min read
Does Cetaphil Have Microplastics? All 79 Published Formulas Checked (2026)
Five of 79, and three are SPF moisturisers — so one category swap covers almost all of it. The Gentle Skin Cleanser and Moisturizing Lotion are clean, and so is the entire baby range once you exclude the water-soluble polymer most ingredient apps wrongly flag.
Read articleAugust 8, 2026 · 14 min read
Drugstore Skincare Audited: 290 Formulas from CeraVe, Cetaphil and Neutrogena (2026)
We counted solid polymer particles across 290 ingredient lists the brands publish themselves. CeraVe 4 of 71, Cetaphil 5 of 79, Neutrogena 38 of 140 — and the Hydro Boost line alone accounts for 15 of them. The method, the named products, and why the dermatologist aisle really is cleaner.
Read articleAugust 8, 2026 · 11 min read
Does CeraVe Have Microplastics? All 71 Published Formulas Checked (2026)
Four out of 71 — the cleanest result we have recorded for any large brand. Solid polymer particles appear in one SPF lotion, the retinol serum, a cleansing balm and a body wash. The three ceramide moisturisers everyone actually buys are clean, and dimethicone is not a microplastic.
Read articleAugust 7, 2026 · 9 min read
Does Muscle Milk Have Microplastics? What Cytosport Won't Tell You
We went looking for a bottle material and an ingredient list and found neither, which makes this the least transparent product we have audited in any category. What the plastic-bottle format implies, why the 11oz is marginally worse than the 14oz, and the better option inside the same brand.
Read articleAugust 6, 2026 · 13 min read
Protein Shakes Ranked by Microplastic and Phthalate Risk (2026)
Only one ready-to-drink shake has ever been publicly tested, and it failed badly. Every major brand ranked on container format, processing route and what the company actually discloses — plus why almost nobody in this aisle will tell you what the bottle is made of.
Read articleAugust 6, 2026 · 10 min read
Does Premier Protein Have Microplastics? What the Carton Actually Tells You
Never tested, and Premier does not state its packaging material — so any number you see is invented. What an aseptic carton is really made of, why it beats the plastic bottle Fairlife was flagged for, and the free switch hiding inside the range.
Read articleAugust 5, 2026 · 9 min read
Does the AeroPress Leach Microplastics? Every Model Checked
The Original chamber is polypropylene and you brew near-boiling water in it, which is the exact combination we warn about. The saving grace is contact time: about a minute, not all day. Every model by material from AeroPress own documentation, plus the two versions with no plastic in the water path at all.
Read articleAugust 4, 2026 · 9 min read
Is a Moccamaster Plastic-Free? Every Part That Touches Your Coffee (2026)
No, and no drip brewer is. But the Moccamaster puts its plastic where it matters least: the reservoir holds cold water and heating happens in a copper element, not a plastic tank. Component by component through the water path, what Technivorm confirms, the polymer it will not disclose, and how it compares with a Keurig.
Read articleAugust 3, 2026 · 10 min read
Fruit and Vegetables Are the Biggest Microplastic Source in Your Diet (2026)
A University of Amsterdam review of 193 studies found fruit, vegetables and grains account for roughly 99.5% of the microplastic particles people swallow, ahead of seafood and bottled water. Why that is about how often you eat them rather than how dirty they are, why it is not a reason to eat less produce, and the buried finding: intake estimates span more than ten orders of magnitude.
Read articleAugust 2, 2026 · 10 min read
Does Crest Have Microplastics? All 50 Formulas Checked (2026)
We read all 50 Crest toothpaste labels P&G files with the FDA. Poloxamer 407 in 21, carbomer in 14, and 15 with neither. The polymer follows the product line rather than the brand, every kids formula uses carbomer, and Crest uses no PEG at all — the opposite of Sensodyne. Which line to switch to.
Read articleAugust 1, 2026 · 9 min read
Does Sensodyne Have Microplastics? All 14 Formulas Checked (2026)
No plastic beads — those were banned and US manufacturing ended in 2018. But 11 of the 14 Sensodyne and Pronamel formulas Haleon files with the FDA list PEG-8, four add PVM/MA copolymer, and two list polyacrylic acid. Two formulas have none. The label-by-label audit, and why xanthan gum is not a plastic.
Read articleJuly 31, 2026 · 16 min read
Our Place Essentials Pan Trio Review: 8.7/10 — The Microplastics Verdict (2026)
Scored 8.7/10 against a published rubric. Thermakind sol-gel ceramic is silica-based, not fluoropolymer, so it has no mechanism to shed microplastics the way a scratched Teflon pan does (~9,100 particles per scratch, Luo 2022). Full scoring breakdown, the Consumer Reports 96-compound PFAS screen, and the 2–3 year replacement cycle we won’t pretend away.
Read articleJuly 31, 2026 · 14 min read
Microplastics in Makeup: 81 Formulas from Fenty, Huda, rhode and Kylie Audited (2026)
We pulled the ingredient lists Fenty Beauty, Huda Beauty, rhode and Kylie Cosmetics publish themselves and counted solid synthetic polymer particles. 24 of 81 formulas contain one: nylon-12, PMMA, PET, polyethylene. The named products, the method, and why makeup stays legal until October 2035.
Read articleJuly 31, 2026 · 12 min read
Clean Beauty’s Plastic Loophole: Why 1,600 Banned Ingredients Don’t Include Plastic (2026)
Clean at Sephora excludes about 50 ingredient categories. Kylie Cosmetics banned more than 1,600. Neither excludes synthetic polymer microparticles, because clean beauty screens for toxicity and microplastics are a persistence problem. The five words to look for on a label.
Read articleJuly 31, 2026 · 11 min read
Does Fenty Beauty Have Microplastics? Every Ingredient List Checked (2026)
Fenty’s own ingredient lists include PMMA in the Bright Fix blurring powder, PET glitter in Brown’d Pout, and polyethylene across 14 shades of Brow MVP pencil. Product by product, plus what Fenty doesn’t publish and the cleaner swaps.
Read articleJuly 31, 2026 · 10 min read
Does Huda Beauty Have Microplastics? Easy Bake and the Nylon-12 Question (2026)
Huda Beauty’s own ingredient list for Easy Bake Loose Baking & Setting Powder puts Nylon-12 fifth. What that ingredient actually does, the honest inhalation question, which Huda products are clean, and the mineral setting powders that skip it.
Read article