Glitter has lost its shine - but scientists may have found a safer substitute

https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2024/oct/11/glitter-has-lost-its-shine-but-scientists-may-have-found-a-safer-substitute

Glitter has lost its shine – but scientists may have found a safer substitute

Petra Stock
Thu 10 Oct 2024 10.00 EDT

Even before Taylor Swift donned “glitter freckles”, the sparkly stuff was prolific – sold in tiny vials at craft shops and sprinkled on to a variety of products from clothing to Christmas decorations, cards and makeup. Glitter ends up everywhere: in the environment as well as the carpet.

While some scientists have called for an outright ban, new Australian-led research has found a shimmery cellulose substitute that could be safer for soil.

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The paper, published in Chemosphere, found that when conventional glitter made from plastic and metal was present in soil at 1,000 mg/kg, springtails produced 61% fewer offspring compared with a control soil sample after 28 days. There were no toxic effects on springtail reproduction at any concentration of the cellulose glitter.

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“We all know that plastic is a big issue in our oceans,” she said. “But what a lot of people aren’t as aware of is that there’s actually more plastic pollution in our soil, and it’s potentially having just as big an impact.”

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“For instance, if we eat them, they can then get through our stomach into our blood. Or if we inhale them, they might be able to get through the pathways and the lungs into the blood and then circulate through the body.”

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