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Pesticide exposure in pregnancy linked to ADHD in children
by Samia Sehgal - August 20, 2010 - comments
Expecting ladies, who are worried about the pesticide exposure to their fetuses, should carefully wash all fruits and vegetables before eating.
Children are more likely to have attention problems if their mothers were exposed to certain pesticides, during pregnancy.
A new study has revealed that pesticide exposure in pregnant women increases their children’s susceptibility to attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD).
The new findings support previous studies, which suggested that organophosphate pesticides can affect the human brain.
Pesticide exposure in pregnancy causing ADHD in children
The study, published in Environmental Health Perspectives, involved Mexican-American women living in the Salinas Valley of California, an area of rigorous agriculture, where pesticide use is extensive.
Researchers at the University of California Berkeley tested pregnant women to see if organophosphate pesticides had actually been taken up by their bodies, and they also followed their children as they grew up.
Children, who were born to women with more chemical traces of the pesticides in their urine while pregnant, were found to be more likely to develop symptoms of ADHD, at the age of 5 years.
“While results of this study are not conclusive, our findings suggest that prenatal exposure to organophosphate pesticides may affect young children's attention,” wrote Amy Marks and colleagues.
Prenatal exposure to pesticides is more dangerous
They found that prenatal exposure to pesticides had a greater effect on the brains of children, than post-natal exposure.
“Given that these compounds are designed to attack the nervous system of organisms, there is reason to be cautious, especially in situations where exposure may coincide with critical periods of fetal and child development.”
The study of over 300 children showed a 500 percent increase in the diagnosis of attention disorders in children with every 10-fold increase in levels of urinary dialkyl phosphate (DAP) metabolites in the mother's urine during pregnancy.
A smaller increase in risk of ADHD was noted in children who had pesticide metabolites in the urine.
How the pesticides harm children?
Organophosphate pesticides harm the brains as they disrupt neurotransmitters, particularly acetylcholine, which is vital for brain development in humans.
Organophosphate exposure is more dangerous for young children since they have lower levels of acetylcholinesterase, which detoxifies these pesticides, explained the researchers.
Wash fresh fruits and vegetables
“Given that these compounds are designed to attack the nervous system of organisms, there is reason to be cautious, especially in situations where exposure may coincide with critical periods of fetal and child development,” said lead author Amy Marks, MPH.
Brenda Eskenazi, a study co-author and director of the University of California at Berkeley’s Center for Children’s Environmental Health, suggests that expecting ladies, who are worried about the pesticide exposure to their fetuses, should carefully wash all fruits and vegetables before eating.