Pesticides linked to birth defects

Saturday April 4, 2009 (foodconsumer.org) -- Women exposed to elevated levels of pesticides at the time of conception have an increased risk of birth defects, especially during the spring and summer months, according to an Indiana University study.

Researchers at the university say they have the first study to link birth defects to women exposed to elevated levels of pesticides in surface water between the months of April and July, states an article in HealthDay News.

It has long been believed that pesticides pose a threat to developing embryos, say researchers, but this study is the first to show “significantly higher risk of defects” in live births by women exposed to pesticides early in their pregnancy.

Dr. Paul Winchester, professor of clinical pediatrics at the University’s School of Medicine, said that “Elevated concentrations of pesticides and other agrochemicals in surface water during April through July coincided with significantly higher risk of birth defects in live births conceived by women whose last menstrual period began in the same months.”

Although the study did not prove a “cause and effect link,” said Winchester, “the fact that birth defects and pesticides in surface water peak during the same four months makes us suspect the two are related.”

The study analyzed 30.1 million births in the United States between 1996 and 2002 and showed higher rates of birth defects for half of 22 categories of birth defects, including spina bifida, cleft lip and Down’s syndrome.

Birth defects are one of the leading causes of infant death and affect about three out of 100 newborns in the United States, said Winchester.

He said that “if our suspicions are right, and pesticides are contributing to the birth defect risk, we can reverse or modify the factors that are causing these lifelong and often very serious medical problems.”

The study is in the April issue of Acta Paediatrica.

(By Sheilah Desrocher, and edited by Heather Kelley)