Pesticide Exposure Linked to ADHD

Exposure to pesticides may put pregnant mothers at risk for having their children develop ADHD

Exposure to pesticides such as malathion may put pregnant mothers at risk for having their children develop an attention disorder by age 5, a new study reveals.

The researchers found that increased levels of pesticide metabolites, by-products of the chemicals, correlates with an increased risk of attention disorders, the study published in the journal Environmental Health Perspectives said.

For each tenfold increase in the metabolites in a mother's system, the risk of her child developing an attention disorder climbed fivefold.

The results were similar to the findings of an earlier Harvard study made this year which suggested that  children exposed to organophosphates, another common pesticide, were more likely to show symptoms of attention deficit disorder.

Women who are pregnant should minimize the risk by washing fresh fruits and vegetables before eating, says Nrenda Eskenazi, co-author of the study and director of the Center for Children's Environmental Health at the University of California at Berkeley.

Eating organic vegetables and fruits are also recommended by some experts.

But anxious mothers should not be avoiding to eat fruits and vegetables. “I think the risk created by not eating them is far greater than the risk from the pesticides,” Eskenazi said.

The researchers measured the effect of the pesticides on the fetus on 348 Mexican-American mothers and the first five years of the children after birth. During the study period, they collected urine samples and measured levels of pesticide metabolites.

Other experts who were not part of the study called it “concerning and intriguing”, but says the findings need to be put in proper perspective.

Dr. Hyagriv Simhan of the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center says, “I think it's human nature to see something like this and completely freak out. But in absolute terms, the risk attributable to pesticide exposure is not that high.”

Posted by George Daniels on Sunday August 22 2010, 8:30 AM EDT. All trademarks acknowledged. Filed under Featured News, Health. Comments and Trackbacks closed. Follow responses: RSS 2.0