Microplastics were found in all of the human testicles involved in a new study from the University of New Mexico.

Researchers in the study found 12 types of microplastics in all 23 human testicles and 47 canine testicles in a study published recently in the journal Toxicological Sciences. 

Microplastics are small plastic particles less than 5 millimeters in size that enter human bodies through plastic packaging, certain foods, tap water, and polluted air. These particles have been linked to increasing rates of heart disease and cancer as well as decreased fertility rates worldwide.

The research team studied testicles from human cadavers ranging in age between 16 and 88 when they died. 

They found the human concentration of microplastics to be nearly 330 micrograms per gram of tissue, significantly higher levels than reported in other studies that have found microplastics in human blood. 

The most common microplastic particle found in the samples was polyethylene, used in plastic bags and bottles, followed by PVC.

Concentrations of microplastics were significantly lower in dogs, at 123 micrograms per gram of tissue.

Although the topic is hotly debated by male fertility experts, scientists estimate that sperm counts globally have declined between 30% and 50% in the past 50 years. According to the World Health Organization, 1-in-6 adults struggle with infertility.

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The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention announced last month provisional data indicating that the total fertility rate, or the number of babies a woman is projected to have in her lifetime, fell to 1.62 births per woman in 2023. That’s the lowest rate since the government began recording the metric in the 1930s.

Vast amounts of microplastics have been found across the planet, ranging from the deepest point of the Pacific Ocean’s Marianas Trench to the top of Mount Everest. Scientists estimate that 8.2 billion tons of plastic have been produced since the 1950s.