Researchers link pesticide exposure in womb to lower IQs.USA Today (4/21, Szabo) reports that "children exposed to high pesticide levels in the womb have lower average IQs than other kids, according to three independent studies" published "in Environmental Health Perspectives." The research "involved more than 400 children, followed from before birth through ages 6 to 9, from both urban and rural areas." One "study found that the most heavily exposed children scored an average of 7 points lower on IQ tests compared with children with the lowest pesticide exposures."
CNN (4/21, Gardner) reports that in one of the other studies, investigators "measured levels of the organophosphate chlorpyrifos in" 265 Dominican and black "women's umbilical cord blood." The investigators "found that when the children were 7, the IQs of those with the highest exposure in the womb was roughly three points lower, on average, than those with the lowest prenatal exposure." Meanwhile, "in the third study...researchers found that the association between organophosphate exposure and developmental delays was more pronounced in children whose mothers had a certain genetic variant that influences an enzyme that breaks down organophosphates." MedPage Today (4/21, Neale) also cover the story.
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