Pesticides and Pregnant Women

Reported November 2009

INDIANAPOLIS, Ind. (Ivanhoe Newswire) -- One out of every 33 babies is born with a birth defect -- one of the leading causes of infant death in this country. Now, researchers say during certain times of the year, birth defects spike. What pregnant women need to know to protect their babies.

Sacha Purnell is expecting her second child. Taking care of herself is top priority.

"It's very important to me to take my vitamins and to test my blood sugar, and to eat right and to exercise to have a healthy baby,“ Purnell told Ivanhoe.

All moms want to give birth to healthy babies. But each year, 120,000 babies are born with birth defects, resulting in physical or mental disabilities, or worse.

"The biggest impact is it's the leading cause of infant deaths in America,“ Paul Winchester, M.D., neonatologist at Riley Hospital for Children in Indianapolis, Indiana told Ivanhoe.

The cause of most birth defects is unknown. Now Dr. Winchester says there may be a link between women exposed to pesticides in the spring and an increased the risk of birth defects.

"We found that women who had their last menstrual period in May or June, they had a significantly greater number of birth defects than babies in other times of the year,“ Winchester explained.

Researchers found that many pesticides are applied in May and June, meaning any rain during those months rinses those chemicals off of the plants and ground.

"After those substances are washed from the fields into the water systems, they eventually find their way into our drinking water,“ Dr. Winchester explained.

Most levels of pesticides found in our water are low and not toxic to adults. But researchers believe even low amounts of pesticides can be harmful to a developing embryo. Doctors say expecting mothers can help lower the risk of birth defects by eating organic foods, taking extra folic acid, and drinking bottled water.

"I think the simplest answer we can say is the fewer chemicals that are in your body at the time you conceive your baby, the better,“ Dr. Winchester said.

Purnell puts her best foot forward for a healthy pregnancy and looks forward to a healthy baby.

"I'm very excited!“ Purnell said. “I can't wait to know if it’s a boy or a girl."

Known risk factors for birth defects include alcohol use, smoking, diabetes and advanced age, but even mothers who didn't have these risk factors had higher overall birth defect rates for babies conceived from April to July.

Click here to Go Inside This Science or contact:

Cindy Fox Aisen
Public Affairs
(317) 274-7722
caisen@iupui.edu

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