Can microplastics from food and water worsen colitis and gut inflammation?

What's actually in it

Polystyrene microplastics are shed from foam food containers, plastic cutlery, yogurt cups, coffee cup lids, and many food packaging products. They're among the most abundant microplastic types found in human gut samples.

The gut lining depends on a healthy microbiome to produce butyrate, a short-chain fatty acid that feeds colon cells and reduces intestinal inflammation. When the microbiome is disrupted, butyrate production falls and the gut lining becomes more permeable and inflamed.

What the research says

A 2026 study on polystyrene microplastics and colitis found that polystyrene microplastic exposure exacerbated colitis severity through gut microbiota disruption and reduced butyrate production. The microplastics altered the composition of gut bacteria away from butyrate-producing species toward more inflammatory populations.

This is concerning for people with existing inflammatory bowel conditions like ulcerative colitis or Crohn's disease. But the gut microbiome disruption from microplastics also affects healthy people over time, contributing to chronic low-grade gut inflammation.

Reducing polystyrene food container use, avoiding foam cups and food trays, and choosing glass or ceramic reusable containers eliminates one of the highest-contribution polystyrene microplastic sources in a typical diet.