As if you needed more reasons to enjoy your local farmers market, a new study has found a significant correlation between exposure to high levels of organophosphate pesticides and ADHD. Past research has already linked organophosphates to behavioral and cognitive problems in children, but those studies all focused on farming communities with high exposure to the pesticide. This is the first to examine the population at large.
This latest study measured the levels of pesticide byproducts in the urine of 1,139 children across the U.S. 95% of the children studied had at least one byproduct in their urine. 10% of the kids had been diagnosed with ADHD. Children with above average levels of organophosphate byproducts – 10 time higher than kids with the lowest levels – were 55% more likely to have ADHD. In addition, children with higher than average levels of the most commonly detected byproduct, about 6 in 10 of the kids, were nearly twice as likely to have ADHD.
Maryse Bouchard, PhD, a researcher in the department of environmental and occupational health at the University of Montreal, told AOL Health, “It’s not a small effect. This is a 100% more risk.”
It’s not unreasonable to conclude that organophosphates might cause ADHD like symptoms in humans, they are designed to disrupt neurological functions – that’s how they kill pests. And while the study did adjust for other health and demographic factors to try to isolate the affects of the pesticide, more studies need to be done to reach a definitive answer.
