Sea salt from around the world is often contaminated with microplastics, according to several studies that examined sea salt in the UK, France, Spain, China and the U.S. “Researchers believe the majority of the contamination comes from microfibres and single-use plastics such as water bottles, items that comprise the majority of plastic waste,” says The Guardian, adding that the United Nations estimates that one garbage truck’s worth of plastic is dumped into the ocean every minute.
Americans likely ingest at least 660 particles of plastic through salt, says Sherri Mason, a professor at the State University of New York at Fredonia, who led the latest research into plastic contamination in salt. In reality, most people probably consume far more, since 90 percent of Americans eat more salt that than the 2.3 grams daily recommended by health officials.