Is Most Current News Simply a Distraction from what REALLY Matters?

Life seems but a quick succession of busy nothings. –  Jane Austen, Mansfield Park

Like you I have been over-whelmed by the news and gossip about he who shall not be named – its not Voldemort for all you Harry Potter fans – but somebody equally dangerous in a chaotic kind of way: I’ll just call him “T” for now. This tempest in a tea pot seems like it may end the rule of the American Empire [which was on its last legs anyway] and end Canada’s far too colonial relationship with said empire, oh well… life goes on. It’s all very titillating but if you take a birds eye view it all seems rather self-absorbed, short term, and almost narcissistic on our part thinking that mere human drama is all that matters. Today let’s try to extract ourselves from this rather “B-movie” drama to something that has more lasting consequences on our – and other life’s – ability to survive beyond tomorrow.

What I am talking about is having enough food, the ability to reproduce and the increase risk of diseases that will kill a bunch of us and for which we have no cure. Let’s start with food. Here is latest on how we are destroying the very foundation of all life: the ability of plants to photosynthesize.

The pollution of the planet by microplastics is significantly cutting food supplies by damaging the ability of plants to photosynthesise, according to a new assessment. The analysis estimates that between 4% and 14% of the world’s staple crops of wheat, rice and maize is being lost due to the pervasive particles. It could get even worse, the scientists said, as more microplastics pour into the environment. About 700 million people were affected by hunger in 2022. The researchers estimated that microplastic pollution could increase the number at risk of starvation by another 400 million in the next two decades, calling that an “alarming scenario” for global food security.[1]

What strikes me most about this is that the impact of microplastics is on the WHOLE WORLD – not just our human world. We seem to be playing like mad, infantile Gods in the playpen of life with power that we are quite honestly not mature enough to handle. If you are not concerned about starvation how about reproduction? It may be you may be so hopeful that you want the human race, and whatever species we evolve into, to survive. If so, what do you think of this bit of nasty? Endocrine disrupting chemicals [EDCs] like PFAs, Bisphenols (like BPA), phthalates & now Micro/Nano-plastics are reducing our fertility: here is a focus on the latter only.

Direct contact with MP [microplastic] particles can have adverse effects at the cellular level (Hwang et al., 2020). The ingestion of MPs can cause intestinal damage due to their small size and ability to absorb various toxic substances, heavy metals (C. Huang, Ge, et al., 2021), additives, and chemicals such as phthalate esters (PAEs; Deng et al., 2021). In summary, ingestion of MPs can cause mechanical damage to the intestines, reduce fertility, affect the growth rate of organisms, and have long-term adverse effects on the ecosystem (Horton et al., 2020; Prata et al., 2020). It is estimated that approximately 15% of childbearing couples worldwide suffer from infertility; the incidence is increasing every year, nearly half of which is caused by male factors (Inhorn & Patrizio, 2015). The quality of human semen has gradually decreased with modernization. For example, from 1940 to 1990, the concentration of male sperm dropped from 113 × 10⁶/ml to 66 × 10⁶/ml.[2]

So it looks like all those macho men out there might not be so full of testosterone as they thought: look out Elon! Clearly if we don’t start reducing the EDCs we ingest we are heading to the dystopian future envisioned by Margeret Atwood in her brilliant novel turned mini-series “The Handmaiden’s Tale” where most of of us are infertile. Still think that most of the news about “T” or “P” [Putin] matters in the long term? Perhaps the distant future of the human race does not matter to you and only your life matters, or as Louis the XV of France is quoted as saying as he was bankrupting France and suffering major military defeats: “Apres moi la Deluge” – which loosely translated means: “I don’t care that my present actions are destroying the future because my pleasure today matters more.” If you are like Louis, you may care that the risk that some deadly superbug will make current antibiotics ineffective has increased yet again because of, yes you guessed it, microplastics!

Microplastics don’t just carry bacteria — they actively help them develop drug resistance. Researchers found that within days of exposure, E. coli became resistant to multiple antibiotics, even in the absence of antibiotic pressure.The researchers found that microplastics, regardless of the tested size and concentration, facilitated multidrug resistance in 4 tested antibiotics (ampicillin, ciprofloxacin, doxycycline and streptomycin) in E. coli within 5-10 days of exposure. [3]

So, what can you do about this? Clearly stop using plastic, don’t buy food wrapped in plastic or plastic containers, find a water source that is not full of microplastics. Here is a start: “ To reduce exposure to microplastics, “I would start by not heating anything in plastic, or consuming hot liquid that has come into contact with plastic”. This includes microwaving food in Tupperware or ready-to-heat products such as boil-in-the-bag rice and “food-grade nylon used for food packaging, as liners for baking pans in restaurants and commercial kitchens and in slow cookers in household kitchens”. When it comes to water, she chooses tap over bottled: “Some bottled waters – including glass bottles – contain thousands of microplastic particles per litre.” [4]

The above is only a start. Do you own research. Join a team to reduce/eliminate not just microplastics but all EDCs and other issues that REALLY matter. If you are feeling really brave sign this petition, Parliamentary Petition e-6460 on Primary Cancer Prevention – https://www.ourcommons.ca/petitions/en/Petition/Details?Petition=e-6460 because all of the chemicals mentioned also increase cancer rates. While the news about the “T” [he who will not be named] may be entertaining in a morbid kind of gallows humour way, its only distracting you from what really matters.

References

1. https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2025/mar/10/microplastics-hinder-plant-photosynthesis-study-finds-threatening-millions-with-starvation

2. https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC9134445/

3. https://scitechdaily.com/microplastics-are-fueling-the-rise-of-deadly-superbugs/

4. https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2023/jul/10/air-drinking-water-dust-food-how-to-reduce-exposure-microplastics