Toddlers whose mothers breathed more of a chemical often present in insecticides during pregnancy had slower brain development, according to a study from New York City.
On average, women breathing the highest amounts of piperonyl butoxide, or PBO, had babies who scored 3.9 points lower on a mental development test at age three (85 points and above is considered normal).
These changes are about the same as those seen in kids with low-level lead exposure, according to Megan Horton, a researcher at Columbia University who worked on the study.
“It means that these kids might not do as well in school” later on, said Horton, whose findings appear in the journal Pediatrics.
Baby brains are extra vulnerable to toxic chemicals, because they are not fully formed.
“If you alter the blueprint, there may be lasting long-term consequences,” Horton explained.
She and her colleagues analyzed air samples from a few hundred pregnant women’s environments to track the levels of PBO and another chemical called permethrin. The two compounds are commonly found in bug sprays for indoor use.
Permethrin wasn’t tied to the toddlers’ mental skills. But among the 42 women who breathed the highest levels of PBO — around 4 parts per trillion — nearly half had a baby with a lower-than-normal mental development score.
“For these toxic chemicals, there’s probably no such thing as a safe level during pregnancy,” said Dr. Philip Landrigan, who heads the Children’s Environmental Health Center at the Mount Sinai School of Medicine in New York, and was not involved in the new study.
He suggested that pregnant women who have an insect problem should make sure more bugs can’t get in through measures such as caulking cracks in walls, and that all food is cleaned up.
“Instead of spraying,” he said, “use little baits like roach motels because it’s contained.”
To me, this has been obvious all along, but in light of this information, I would disagree with using even “contained” pesticides, as there is still an exposure risk. Pregnant or not, this is further proof that pesticides promote serious neurological complications, and should be avoided at all costs. If you absolutely must use pesticides, make sure you wear gloves, a ventilator, and other protective gear to limit your exposure as much as possible. If you have been exposed to pesticides in the past, there are tests that can be performed to assess the levels in your system. Treatments can then be implemented to help your body excrete these harmful toxins.
SOURCE: http://bit.ly/gZSdEU Pediatrics, online February 7, 2011.
