(Beyond Pesticides, January 5, 2022) Household use of pesticides may have harmful effects on motor development in infants, according to a study published late last year in the journal Pediatric and Perinatal Epidemiology. The study focused on low-income Hispanic women in Los Angeles, California, who were enrolled in an ongoing study called Maternal and Developmental Risks from Environmental and Social Stress (MADRES). As with other pollutants in society, low-income communities of color are disproportionately exposed to toxic pesticides, leading to early exposure and lifelong health consequences.
Women included in the MADRES group were over 18 years of age and fluent in English or Spanish. In this study, approximately 300 MADRES participants met inclusion criteria and completed a questionnaire about household pesticide use at the 3-month postpartum visit. The questionnaires typically ask whether pesticides have been used in the home since the child was born. After another three months, the researchers also tested the infants’ motor development using the protocol’s Age and Stage-3 screening tool, which assesses children’s ability to perform muscle movements.
Overall, about 22% of mothers reported using pesticides at home in the first months of their children’s lives. The analysis found that 21 infants tested were below the threshold set by the screening tool, recommending further assessment by health care providers. “In the adjusted model, expected gross motor scores were 1.30 (95% CI 1.05, 1.61) times higher in infants whose mothers reported household use of rodent or insect pesticides than in infants whose mothers did not report household pesticide use. Higher scores indicate decreased decline in gross motor skills and decreased athletic performance,” the study says.
Although the researchers said more data is needed to identify specific pesticides that may play a role, the overall findings support the hypothesis that household pesticide use is associated with impaired motor development in infants. Using a method that takes into account unmeasured variables that may influence the final results, the researchers noted: “The E value of 1.92 (95% CI 1.28, 2.60) suggests that a large number of unmeasured confounders are needed. to reduce the observed association between households. Use of rodents. Association between insecticides and infant gross motor development.”
Over the past decade, there has been a general shift in household insecticide use from the use of older organophosphate chemicals to the use of synthetic pyrethroid insecticides. But this shift has not resulted in safer exposure; A growing body of literature suggests that synthetic pyrethroids may cause a range of adverse health effects, especially in children. Several studies have been published linking synthetic pyrethroids to developmental problems in children. More recently, a 2019 Danish study found that higher concentrations of pyrethroid pesticides corresponded to higher rates of ADHD in children. Exposure to pesticides at a young age can have serious consequences. In addition to developing motor skills and academic development, boys exposed to synthetic pyrethroids were more likely to experience early puberty.
These findings are even more concerning in the context of studies showing how synthetic pyrethroids can remain on hard surfaces in homes for more than a year. This persistent residue can lead to multiple re-exposures, turning what a person may consider a one-time use event into a long-term exposure event. But unfortunately, for many low-income people in the United States, using pesticides in and around their homes or apartments is not a decision they can make. Many property management companies, landlords and public housing authorities have ongoing service contracts with chemical pest control companies or require residents to regularly treat their homes. This outdated and dangerous approach to pest control often involves service visits to preventively spray toxic pesticides unnecessarily, resulting in disproportionate exposure to pests on low-income people who could otherwise keep their homes clean. It’s no wonder why, when studies can map disease risk to zip codes, low-income people, Indigenous peoples and communities of color are at greatest risk from pesticides and other environmental diseases.
Although studies have shown that feeding children organic food can improve memory and intelligence test scores, additional pesticide use in the home can undermine these benefits, even though in many cases organic food comes under greater price pressure. Ultimately, everyone should have access to healthy food grown without pesticides and be able to live without forced exposure to toxic pesticides that can harm the health of you and your family. If your pesticide use can be changed—if you can stop using pesticides in your home or talk to your homeowner or service provider—Beyond Pesticides strongly recommends that you take steps to stop using them. For help stopping the use of household pesticides and controlling household pests without using chemicals, visit Beyond Pesticides ManageSafe or contact us [email protected].
This entry was posted on Wednesday, January 5, 2022 at 12:01 am and is filed under Children, Motor Development Effects, Nervous System Effects, Synthetic Pyrethroids, Uncategorized. You can follow responses to this entry via the RSS 2.0 feed. You can skip to the end and leave a reply. Ping is not allowed at this time.
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Post time: Apr-23-2024