Plastic Free July: Everything You Need to Know About Microplastics in 2025

Microplastics pollute every part of the planet. They’ve been found in remote Antarctic sea ice, the fruits and vegetables we grow, and inside our bodies. Microplastics pose a real threat to human and environmental health, so this Plastic-Free July, let’s talk about what they are and what we can do about it.

By Nora Chestnut on Jun 25, 2025

Why Plastic-Free July?

Any time is a good time to reduce your single-use plastic, and Plastic-Free July is an annual invitation to recommit to these goals.

A viral awareness initiative of the Plastic Free Foundation, Plastic-Free July inspires millions of people worldwide to avoid plastic waste. The “challenge” style format of focusing on avoiding plastic for one month can help us establish habits that last for the rest of the year.

What are microplastics?

Plastics aren’t just an unsightly problem. There’s also unseen plastic polluting pretty much everything in the form of small particles less than 5mm (or slightly larger than ⅛ inch) in size. (1) These plastics come from broken down pieces of plastic that end up loose in the environment.

What are nanoplastics?

A subcategory of microplastics, smaller nanoplastics are synthetic polymers that range from 1 nanometer to 1 micrometer in size. (For perspective, a human hair is about 20-200 micrometers in width.) Invisible to the naked eye, these are small enough to enter human cells and tissues.

A subcategory of microplastics, smaller nanoplastics are synthetic polymers that range from 1 nanometer to 1 micrometer in size

How are microplastics harmful for the environment?

Microplastics are increasingly found inside animals big and small, reverberating up the food chain and disrupting ecosystems. It’s not just oceans scientists are concerned about, but also other sites, such as our soils.

These microplastics can be toxic, damaging cells and DNA, and the more they are broken down, the larger the surface area of the particles and the greater their ability to interact with their surroundings. (2)

Microplastics can be admitted into our food and drinks even from brief exposure to plastic containers.

How are microplastic harmful to humans?

Evidence of these plastics are found in human lungs, brain tissue, blood, the gut, reproductive tissues, and more. (3)

The body of research on the health risks posed by plastics is growing, and plastics and their associated chemicals and additives have been linked to chronic disease, metabolic problems, endocrine disruption, reproductive issues, cancer, and more. (4) A recent study from this year even showed that plastic exposure can affect your sleep in the same way that caffeine does. (5)

Where do microplastics come from and how are they formed?

Microplastics come from several sources, and they’re able to enter our bodies through three known ways: inhalation, ingestion, and dermal exposure (or depositing on our skin).

Here are some examples of microplastic sources:

→ Microplastics can be leached into our food and drinks via plastic packaging. A plastic tea bag, a laminated cup, a disposable water bottle, a to-go container—all of these are sources for microplastics entering our bodies. Researchers have found that a liter of bottled water may contain around 240,000 microplastics. (6)

And it’s not just with wear and tear from overuse that these plastics can seep into our systems. Alarmingly, microplastics can be admitted into our food and drinks even from brief exposure to plastic containers. (7)

It’s estimated that each year, Americans ingest 70,000 microplastics in their drinking water alone

→ Some microplastics are created by car tires. The friction with the road creates plastic dust at a rate of 20 grams of plastic every 100 kilometers, and we can end up breathing in this plastic dust. (8)

→ Microplastics can also come in the form of synthetic microfibers from clothes. For instance, a single fleece jacket can shed up to 250,000 microfibers in a single wash. (9) Synthetic microfibers have been found to make up as much as 85% of the man-made waste along shorelines. (10)

→ The skin is your most absorbent organ, and toxic chemicals from microplastics can seep into your skin through clothing and furniture.

→ Microplastics can leach into your food each time you use a plastic cutting board. As you chop into that onion, the knife carves up tiny flecks of plastic that get intermixed with your food.

→ Most chewing gum is even a culprit, since modern chewing gum uses a plastic gum base. Researchers have found that even chewing a small piece could release thousands of microplastics into your saliva. (11)

→ It’s estimated that each year, Americans ingest 70,000 microplastics in their drinking water alone. These come from a variety of sources, but especially littering, stormwater runoff, and poor wastewater management. (12)

At re_ grocery, all of our grocery staples, bath and beauty products, kitchen products, cleaning products, and other home goods are designed to help you avoid plastic in your life.

Because there are so many different ways that microplastics can be introduced to our bodies, including the very water we drink, addressing the plastic crisis must be a collective effort as well as an individual one.

How to avoid microplastics

Knowing about the problem is the first step to creating change. So now let’s talk about some actionable ways you can help cut down on microplastic exposure for yourself and the environment.

→ Use less plastic packaging

According to a 2020 study from PEW Trusts, the yearly flow of microplastics into our oceans could be reduced by 80% by 2040 by applying existing approaches to reducing single-use plastic in favor of eco-friendly alternatives. (13)

At re_ grocery, all of our grocery staples, bath and beauty products, kitchen products, cleaning products, and other home goods are designed to help you avoid plastic in your life.

Addressing the plastic crisis must be a collective effort as well as an individual one

We use a combination of refill (with no single-use containers), reusable products, plastic-free produce from the farmers’ market, and compostable materials to eliminate the need for single-use plastics.

Some easy swaps include a reusable water bottle, glass, silicone or metal tumblers for drinking, reusable straws, metal silverware, glass or stainless steel to-go containers, and a glass nursing bottle for baby.

→ Don’t heat or reuse plastic for food and water

Sometimes plastic happens. If you do find yourself sharing a takeout meal that came in plastic packaging, receiving food from a neighbor in a plastic dish, or having tea from a plastic sachet, at least be careful not to heat it. Before microwaving your food, transfer it to a food-safe dish. Before steeping your tea, cut the plastic bag away and use the tea leaves in a tea strainer spoon or mesh ball.

→ Find plastic-free alternatives

To be safe, it’s a good idea to think about other ways to get rid of plastic in your life, not just the single-use containers. For instance, switch to a chewing gum with a plastic-free chicle base.

Ditch the toxic, plastic-containing period products and opt for silicone menstrual cup and organic cotton pads if possible. And while recycled plastic sportswear might seem like a great idea, you might not want plastic fibers so close to absorbent skin and intimate areas as you work out.

Microplastics can leach into your food each time you use a plastic cutting board

→ Reduce microfiber waste

To help prevent microplastics from entering the water system, it’s a good idea to install a microfiber catcher attachment in your washing machine and use a microfiber plastic bag when washing your clothes. Avoid plastic and toxic detergent and opt for eco-friendly detergent instead.

In addition, opt for clothing made with natural, long fibers, eliminate harmful fast fashion from your routine, and generally avoid overwashing your clothes in order to help them last longer.

→ Switch to a wooden cutting board

To avoid chopping up tiny plastics into your food, switch out plastic cutting boards for wooden ones. To keep your wooden cutting board clean, regularly deep clean it using salt and half a lemon and let it sit before washing it out.

→ Drive less

Since car tires are a common offender for microplastics—not to mention other forms of pollution—always opt to walk when possible or use public transportation to cut down on the amount that you’re driving your car.

→ Advocate for plastic solutions

Finally, advocate for plastic solutions in your community. Not everyone is a born activist, and that’s okay. Even by talking to your friends, family, and networks about the microplastic problem and some of your favorite swaps can help raise awareness and create change.

Plastics and their toxic chemical additives have been scientifically shown to have adverse effects for human health and our environments, and because microplastics can enter our systems, they pose an additional threat.

But knowing about this problem is the first step, and that’s why Plastic Free July is a great opportunity to assess your plastic exposure and consumption. This Plastic-Free July, by reducing plastics on a dramatic scale in our everyday lives in favor of safe reusables, we can all be part of the solution.

For more on Plastic-Free July and actionable ways to protect the environment, read our recent blogs!

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