CThe market has been jampacked by bowls and paper plates made from biodegradable and compostable materials One of the reasons for their popularity is the claim that they are better for the environment. compared to similar products made from plastics. These products are often made from wheat stalks, sugar cane, and other plant materials that have ideally been thrown away. As a result, they have considered the alternatives to plastics and the solution to averting the plastic crisis.
What are compostable and biodegradable materials?
These products are also known as molded fiber. They are typically used to reduce the need for using plastics or to reduce the amount of plastic waste given off by a company or a homestead. Although these products are incredibly beneficial to the environment, they have significant health effects that also need highlighting.
The primary reason for the creation of compostable paper bowls and disposable bowls for soup was to mitigate the high amount of waste that has been entering the environment. Their advantages are that despite being water and oil-resistant just like the other products, they are eco-friendly.
What contributes to the health hazards of compostable plates?
In the previous generation of paper plates and bowls, these products were manufactured with a plastic film to help make them resistant to oil and water. But as plastic got eliminated and eco-friendly products made the need for plastics had to be replaced with another substance that is equally resistant to water and oil. And that is how poly-fluoroalkyl substances were developed.
Abbreviated as PFAS, these substances have become so ubiquitous that they can be found in dessert and bread wrappers, takeout containers, paper plates, and even paper boards. The American Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has reiterated that PFAS are not harmful when they get into the body in small amounts.
However, there is yet to be an established legal safety limit for PFAS. current guidelines suggest that a health advisory has been given for PFAS level that is more than 70 parts per trillion in water. Studies have also shown that high levels of chemical interactions, including PFAS in the body can disrupt the normal functioning of vital body parts.
Conclusion
The Centers for Disease Control (CDC) found out that high levels of PFAS increase the risk of cancer, affects growth and learning, lowers the chances of getting pregnant, and cause hormonal imbalances among other things.