It's still early days, but this technology is a hopeful step.
  • WhirlpoolBrewer@lemmings.worldEnglish
    36·
    3 days ago

    There are other ways to lower the amount of plastic in you. If you donate your blood you can measurably lower your pfas levels. Really just removing blood which carries plastic through your whole body will also lower your concentration of plastics. Because plastic is in the water, make sure you drink filtered water. They do make filters that will catch micro plastics and some will advertise it. If you want to keep your levels lower avoid hydrophobic coatings that sit next to food for extended periods of time and definitely don’t heat that food next to a hydrophobic coating. Think microwaving food in a container with coatings that’ll leach into the food. So bags of popcorn should be avoided like the plague, unfortunately.

    Source: Veritasium, skip to at least 50:15, but honestly I’d recommend watching the whole thing https://youtu.be/SC2eSujzrUY.

    • Mongostein@lemmy.caEnglish
      2·
      2 days ago

      You can also pop your popcorn in plain undyed paper bags. Toss them in oil, put em in the bag, microwave.

    • toynbee@lemmy.worldEnglish
      101·
      3 days ago

      A while ago there was a reddit post about how you don’t need bagged popcorn to pop popcorn. You don’t even need any of them there fancy air poppers. All you need is a glass container and the popcorn itself. And it’s true!

      The only part that presented any trouble was finding a safe container with a safe lid - during the process of popping, an individual kernel is super warm, so if it hits a lid that can’t tolerate that it can melt pits into the lid.

      Other than that (and making sure you don’t add too much popcorn, that stuff expands like crazy), just dump the kernels into your container, cover it up (don’t forget to vent as appropriate) and then microwave as you would the bagged stuff. Add your seasonings, shake up the container, and enjoy.

      • CucumberFetish@lemm.eeEnglish
        131·
        3 days ago

        There’s an even more accessible way to pop popcorn. Add oil to a pot, heat it on the stove and dump in some kernels. Optionally cover with a lid.

        • toynbee@lemmy.worldEnglish
          93·
          3 days ago

          That indeed is a functional method, but I’m not sure I’d call it more accessible. Unless you mean that more people probably own a pot than an appropriate microwave safe container, in which case, fair enough.

    • 𝕸𝖔𝖘𝖘@infosec.pubEnglish
      3·
      3 days ago

      If it’s Veritasium, I would just recommend watching. End of sentence. This bloke is amazing.

      What’s a “hydrophobic coating” in relation to foods?

      I don’t use plastic to heat anything up. I may buy microwavable foods, but then scrape them into a metallic or class container and heat them in the oven (that’s more out of necessity, as I don’t have a microwave oven). And I don’t like popped corn (though I kind of wish I did).

      • Pilferjinx@lemmy.worldEnglish
        10·
        3 days ago

        I just hate that he exudes privilege. It’s not his fault, he does amazing science communication. But man it’s hard for me to watch his stuff.

        • duckythescientist@sh.itjust.worksEnglish
          91·
          2 days ago

          And if there’s ever a brand integration, he’ll spout their marketing drivel uncritically and try to pass it off as science. I can’t trust him anymore.

        • SuperCub@sh.itjust.worksEnglish
          2·
          2 days ago

          Yeah, that’s a good way of putting it. I don’t like him either, but the information is useful and/or interesting so I’ve been watching some of them.

      • WolfLink@sh.itjust.worksEnglish
        2·
        2 days ago

        Hydrophobic coating loosely means a thin water proof coating on a material that otherwise isn’t waterproof.

        Example: the previously mentioned popcorn bags are paper based but with a thin plastic based coating. (Historically we used to use wax for this kind of thing but in the modern day it’s almost always plastic)

        Not that containers made of glass, ceramic, or metals that don’t corrode don’t need and typically don’t have hydrophobic coatings.

    • TheRedSpade@lemmy.worldEnglish
      74·
      3 days ago

      So bags of popcorn should be avoided like the plague, unfortunately.

      Unfortunately? Popcorn is the least flavorful thing in existence. Just find some other bland edible material and put your toppings on that instead.

    • queermunist she/her@lemmy.mlEnglish
      36·
      3 days ago

      There are other ways to lower the amount of plastic in you. If you donate your blood you can measurably lower your pfas levels. Really just removing blood which carries plastic through your whole body will also lower your concentration of plastics.

      I’m pretty sure regular blood letting is actually not great for you either.