A 2024 University of New Mexico study found microplastics in every one of 23 human testicles tested. The average concentration was 329 micrograms/gram of tissue, nearly 3x higher than dogs in the same geographic environment. The most abundant polymer was polyethylene, the material of plastic bags and bottles. The second was PVC, which researchers noted has been shown to interfere with sperm production and act as an endocrine disruptor. Concentrations were highest in men between the ages of 20 and 45. Peak reproductive years. The same lab then examined placenta samples in a separate study. Every one contained microplastics too, at concentrations ranging from 6.5 to 790 micrograms/gram, averaging 127. That's tissue that only exists for eight months of pregnancy. The concentration built up that fast. Then they moved to the brain. A study published in Nature Medicine in early 2025 found microplastic concentrations in the frontal cortex to be higher than in the liver or kidney. Comparing 2016 samples to 2024 samples, average concentrations rose approximately 50% in eight years. In samples from patients diagnosed with dementia before death, concentrations were up to 5x higher than the 2024 average. That would be one thing if the plastic just sat there. Microplastics have been documented in umbilical cord blood, meaning they cross the placenta and enter the developing baby's circulation directly. Concentrations found range from 1.1-10+ particles/gram of cord tissue. The same particles have been found in amniotic fluid, the medium the fetus develops in for nine months. So the baby soaks in the mother’s exposure, and researchers are just starting to document the correlations with real harm. Honestly, they should have gotten more attention than they have. A 2025 study found that women who developed pregnancy-induced hypertension had 46% higher microplastic concentrations in umbilical cord tissue than women who had healthy pregnancies. The correlation tracked with frequency of plastic tableware use, plastic-packaged beverage consumption, and takeout meals.

New research presented at ENDO 2026, the Endocrine Society's annual meeting, found that male rats exposed to DEHP, a plasticizer used in medical tubing, IV bags, and many children's toys, during gestation and shortly after birth showed elevated anxiety behavior as adults, even long after the chemical exposure had ended. Researchers traced the effect to suppressed GABA activity, the brain's primary inhibitory neurotransmitter, during fetal brain development. A few caveats matter here. This is animal data, not yet published in a peer reviewed journal, and the effect was only studied in male offspring after prenatal exposure, so it does not tell us how DEHP affects humans, adults, or females. That said, this finding is consistent with a growing body of research showing that even low level exposure to endocrine disrupting chemicals can meaningfully disrupt brain and hormone development, and it fits a pattern seen in other recent studies linking phthalate exposure to ADHD and anxiety related brain changes in children. The precautionary principle applies here. You do not need definitive human data to justify reducing exposure to a chemical family already linked to harm across multiple studies, especially during pregnancy. Practical steps include avoiding plastic food storage and wrap when possible, choosing PVC free medical and household products where you have a choice, and being selective about children's toys and teethers.

In the face of all these toxic assaults, you need a secret weapon--so I will give you one right now: bitter foods. Besides being the antidote to "sweet addiction," bitters are an important but forgotten detox food, and it's beyond time to bring them back! A surprising number of your favorite foods are classified as "bitters"-- artichokes, asparagus, grapefruit, dandelion tea, and even coffee and cacao. One thing that makes bitters such a nutritional boon is that they help restore the gallbladder and, even more importantly, healthy bile flow. Gallbladder disease is often a symptom of a more serious problem: congested bile. The reason so many people are losing their gallbladder is that they've developed thick, sludgy, congested bile that literally mucks up the works. Why is bile important? It's a crucial detox vehicle — and hardly anyone is talking about it. Bile binds with and carries a multitude of toxins out of the body via the intestines--heavy metals, drugs, excess hormones, chemicals, food preservatives, pesticides, flame retardants, and the like. Bile is what flushes away the toxins your liver collects. An alarming number of people have bile and gallbladder issues but are completely unaware. Among other things, toxic bile can drag down your thyroid. One Finnish study showed that hypothyroidism is seven times more likely in people with reduced bile flow. It's no surprise that sluggish bile and accumulation of body fat go hand in hand. If your bile is thick and not flowing freely, all that sludge remains in your system, and the excess toxins get parked in your fat cells. And you'll have plenty of those because, without adequate bile, your digestive tract cannot properly break down fats into forms your body can use, so it has no choice but to store them. Today's toxic world calls for a radical new approach. Today, it is impossible to avoid all health-compromising agents, but with diligence and increased awareness, you can substantially reduce your exposure--starting right where you are. It is never too late! Regardless of your age, health status, or situation, your body wants to be healthy and possesses an immense capacity for self-healing. Even small changes made consistently over time can make a world of difference.

Sperm counts have been falling for fifty years. Miscarriage rates are climbing. The age at which couples can conceive has crept up every decade since the 1970s. Something is changing about the environment our species reproduces in… And most of what's changing is chemistry. New chemistry. Chemistry humans have never lived inside before. This piece is about one chemical in particular, because it's everywhere, and the evidence is clearer than for any other. I’m talking about glyphosate, the active ingredient in Roundup. In 2018, researchers tested 71 pregnant women in central Indiana for glyphosate via urine samples. 93% had detectable levels. The women with higher levels delivered shorter pregnancies. Let me show you what's going on. But first, a bit about glyphosate so we’re all on the same page… Glyphosate is a broad-spectrum herbicide patented by Monsanto in 1974 and brought to market as Roundup. It works by inhibiting a metabolic process called the shikimate pathway, which plants and some bacteria use to make essential amino acids. Animals don't have this pathway, which is part of why glyphosate was sold as low-risk for humans. We'll come back to that. Today, it's the most heavily used herbicide on earth. The reason isn't only Roundup, but the system Monsanto built around it. Starting in 1996, "Roundup Ready" crops were engineered to survive direct glyphosate application. Soybeans, corn, cotton, canola, sugar beets, alfalfa. Spray entire fields, kill everything that isn't the crop. The product and the seed got locked together. But the part most people don't know (and the part RFK Jr. specifically singled out in 2024) is the practice of pre-harvest desiccation. Glyphosate is sprayed on non-Roundup-Ready crops shortly before harvest to dry them out for processing. Wheat, oats, and legumes such as beans, chickpeas, and lentils. So your "non-GMO" oat product can still carry significant glyphosate residue, because the chemical wasn't used to grow the plant but to kill it on schedule.

Microplastics now turn up nearly everywhere researchers look, including human blood, placentas, and arterial plaque. The concern is real, but it can tip into alarmism. A 2024 prospective study in the New England Journal of Medicine examined plaque removed from the carotid arteries of 257 patients and followed them for about three years. Those with microplastics and nanoplastics detected in their plaque had roughly 4.5 times the risk of heart attack, stroke, or death compared with those who had none. That is an association rather than proof the particles caused the events, and this field is still young. Even so, the precautionary principle applies, and the kitchen is the easiest place to act. Heat, abrasion, and contact with fatty or acidic food are what drive plastic to shed into what you eat, so a handful of targeted changes does most of the work. In our own kitchen, we have eliminated almost all plastic: glass and mason jars for storage, beeswax wraps in place of plastic bags, wood or stainless steel tools, and no microwaving food in plastic containers. Y ou do not need a perfectly plastic-free home to benefit. Focus on the few spots where plastic meets heat and food, and you have handled most of the exposure within your control.