A new study, conducted by Brenda Eskenazi at the University of California at Berkely, and published in the August 19th issue of the journal Environmental Health Perspectives found fascinating results about ADHD. They point to a connection between prenatal levels of exposure to metabolites of organophosphate pesticides and an increase risk for ADHD in children.
The researchers, examining 300 children enrolled in the Center for the Health Assessment of Mothers and Children of Salinas, found that pesticide exposure during pregnancy didn’t significantly increase the risk of ADHD for children ages 3.5, but did seem to be highly associated with children around 5.
In another study, published in Pediatrics by Dr. Marc Weisskopf of the Harvard School of Public Health, researchers found that these pesticides may increase the risk of ADHD in children ages 8-15 years.