Can we really remove damaging microplastics from our blood like Orlando Bloom tried to do?

702's Gugs Mhlungu is joined on Weekend Breakfast by resident GP and CEO of Proactive Health Solutions, Dr Fundile Nyati.

Hollywood star Orlando Bloom recently made headlines when he revealed that he'd  undergone a procedure to 'clean' his blood to get rid of microplastics.

The actor resorted to a treatment known as apheresis, where blood is removed from your body, separated and filtered for toxins.

But can you really remove these miniscule particles from your bloodstream?

RELATED: Plastic pollution 'grave and growing' health threat: Lancet

While micro- and nano-plastics are now being linked to disease, the scientists are saying there’s simply no avoiding them.

Gugs Mhlungu chats to Dr Fundile Nyati, resident GP on Weekend Breakfast.

While acknowledging that his initial response to this as a discussion topic was one of 'oh, another fad', Dr Nyati makes the point that science is not static.

He highlights the latest academic research he found, published in respected medical journals, which provided results of apheresis used for people who have chronic fatigue syndrome (myalgic encephalomyelitis) and also some with dementia.

It was found that once these patients had undergone the procedure, their symptoms actually did get better, Dr Nyati reports.

"A lot of work has been done around brain-related conditions like these, and now the evidence has been published that indeed there is improvement in terms of the symptomatology of those patients... but it's a highly technical procedure so it will take time before it's available for public use like for instance those drip lounges that are being put in malls."

Dr Fundile Nyati, CEO - Proactive Health Solutions

He emphasizes that the evidence concerns patients who already had conditions that are linked now with the accumulation of these plastics.

"We ingest these artificial polymers over time through the food that we eat, sometimes through the air we breathe, and also through the cosmetics we use." 

Dr Fundile Nyati, CEO - Proactive Health Solutions

"The plastics activate inflammation, affecting the functioning of the mitochondria of the brain cells... They are actually able to pass through the blood-brain barrier (BBB)."

Dr Fundile Nyati, CEO - Proactive Health Solutions

To hear more about this fascinating topic, listen to the interview audio at the top of the article