Every year, the average person consumes about 250 grams of microplastics. That's like a heaping dinner plate of plastic, Reuters notes.

• Avoiding microplastics is impossible, and research on how it could affect our long-term health is still in its early stages, per Stanford Medicine. Small studies have suggested microplastics play a role in preterm births, inflammation and some diseases.

💡 The latest: As people grow increasingly concerned over their exposure to plastic and look for solutions, a "blood cleansing" treatment is gaining popularity. It appears to reduce microplastics circulating in the bloodstream, Axios' Ashley May writes from newly published research.

• A new peer-reviewed study from the company Circulate Health found that therapeutic plasma exchange (TPE) reduced microplastics levels among patients with moderate to high levels.

How it works: Plasma exchange is an FDA-cleared procedure that uses IVs in both arms to remove about 70% of the cell-free portion of the blood and replace it with albumin, saline and sometimes antibodies to boost immunity. One session typically takes two to three hours.

• The treatment has long been used in hospitals for certain autoimmune and neurological conditions.

🩸 More recently, TPE has moved into the longevity space, claiming "healthspan" benefits.

• Among those doing it: biohacker Bryan Johnson, Goop founder Gwyneth Paltrow, award-winning singer LeAnn Rimes, NFL Hall of Famer Troy Aikman and technologist Peter Diamandis.
• It's not cheap: Circulate treatments cost between $5,000 and $15,000.

What they found: Researchers measured microplastics in blood samples before and after plasma exchange procedures performed on 114 patients.

• Among patients with the highest levels of circulating microplastics, average levels fell from 52.2 to 21.1 particles per 100 microliters of blood after a single treatment. Patients with moderate levels also saw reductions.

🔎 Reality check: Patients who started with very low levels sometimes saw slight increases after treatment, which researchers believe is a result of plastic tubing and IV equipment used during the procedure.

• Read on.

A fiery Wyoming sunset, snapped by Finish Line fan Dan Mahoney of Phoenix, during a fly fishing trip near Alcova, Wyo., last month.