Fact Check: Social media post claiming that a man died of cancer as he consumed food from plastic containers is false
A viral message in Telugu is being shared with false claim that a man has died of cancer as he consumed food from plastic containers
A research conducted by the team at the Environmental Research Organisation Toxics Link revealed that the salt and sugar we daily consume contain microplastics, meaning plastic particles which are less than 5 millimetres.
According to the study, 89.15 microplastic pieces were found per kilogram of iodised salt while 6.70 pieces per kilogram were detected in organic rock salt. The study samples contained salt and sugar brands of all sizes, including both packaged and unpackaged. Following the release of these findings, medical experts have expressed concerns over the use of plastic glasses, bottles and other containers as these tiny plastic particles are known to interfere with nutrition and metabolism and carry the risk of cancer.
In this backdrop, a claim in Telugu is going viral on social media platforms, including WhatsApp, stating that a 36-year-old man died of cancer. It also stated that the deceased person never consumed gutka, pan masala or alcohol and was not a smoker either. The doctors later conducted an autopsy and medical examination on the body and found that he was eating food from a plastic tiffin box, drinking water in a plastic bottle which caused cancer as it released tiny plastic particles in his food and water over a period of a time, the claim added.
మా 36 ఏళ్ల వ్యక్తికి క్యాన్సర్ వచ్చింది , అతను చివరి దశలో ఉన్నాడు, అతను తన గడచిన జీవితంలో ఎప్పుడూ గుట్కా, సిగరెట్, పాన్ మసాలా లేదా మద్యం ఉపయోగించలేదు. 2/3 రోజుల నుంచి కడుపునొప్పి రావడంతో డాక్టర్‌ని సంప్రదించి చికిత్స ప్రారంభించినా ప్రయోజనం లేకపోవడంతో సీనియర్‌ డాక్టర్‌ని సందర్శించారు. అక్కడి డాక్టర్ రిపోర్టులన్నీ తీసి చూడగా.. పొట్ట, పేగుల్లో క్యాన్సర్ అని తేలింది.డాక్టర్ ప్రారంభించిన చికిత్స, చికిత్స సమయంలో మొత్తం తన వద్ద ఉన్న డబ్బు తో పాటు ఇల్లు అమ్మవలసి వచ్చింది, ఇంత చేసినా ఆఖరికి అతను మరణించాడు. ప్లాస్టిక్‌లో వేడి ఆహారాన్ని తినడం, ప్లాస్టిక్ బాటిల్‌లోని నీరు తాగడం వల్ల అందులోని రసాయనాల వల్ల క్యాన్సర్ బారిన పడినట్లు పరిశోధనల అనంతరం తేలింది.
When translated, the claim reads: “A 36-year-old man never used gutkha, pan masala and alcohol. He was not a smoker either. Recently, he complained of stomach pain and visited the hospital. After conducting a battery of tests, the doctors confirmed that he has gastric cancer. He took expensive treatment by selling his house but died due to cancer. Later, medical experts conducted a thorough examination on his body and found out the reason for his cancer – he was using plastic containers for eating food and drinking water.”
Fact Check:
During the investigation, the Telugu Post fact check team found this claim false.
As the news of a healthy man’s unexpected death due to tiny plastic particles went viral on various social media platforms including WhatsApp, we investigated into it.
The claim did not seem legit as no details were provided except for the age of the “cancer” victim. Even though the text of the claim is quite lengthy, no effort was made to provide the name of the deceased person, his residing place and hospital details.
When we contacted the person who posted the claim on Facebook, he replied that he shared this information with the intention of educating people about the dangers of tiny plastic particles.
We searched through major social media platforms with the text given in the claim and also did a look around but found no such report in mainstream vernacular media as well.
We then looked at the New England Journal of Medicine’s (NEJM), a leading journal published by the Massachusetts Medical Society, March 6, 2024 report which stated that “Microplastics and nanoplastics (MNPs) are emerging as a potential risk factor for cardiovascular disease.”
“The patients with carotid artery plaque in which MNPs were detected had a higher risk of a composite of myocardial infarction, stroke, or death from any cause at 34 months of follow-up than those in whom MNPs were not detected,” it concluded.
In light of the above investigation, it can be concluded that microplastics can cause cardiovascular diseases. However, in the recent times, no death has been directly attributed to microplastics and nanoplastics either in Telangana or Andhra Pradesh. Hence, the viral claim is false.