ADHD and Malathion Link

Malathion associated with AD/HD in children.
The Los Angeles Times (5/17, Maugh) reports that, according to a study published in the journal Pediatrics, "children with higher levels of the pesticide malathion in their urine seem to be at an increased risk of attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (AD/HD)." Researchers from the Harvard University School of Public Health "studied data on 1,139 children from the government's National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey for the period 2000 to 2004. Among the information collected in the survey was the level of metabolites of malathion in urine and, through a structured interview with the parents, whether a child had been formally diagnosed with AD/HD."
The children "with higher levels had increased chances of having ADHD," the AP (5/17, Johnson) reports. The youngsters "may have eaten food treated with pesticides, breathed it in the air, or swallowed it in their drinking water. The study didn't determine how they were exposed," but the study authors theorized that most children who are not on farms may be exposed to pesticides through their diet.
Time (5/17, Park) reports that the study's "author stresses that her study uncovers only an association, not a direct causal link between pesticide exposure and the...condition."