Pesticide Exposure Found to Lower Intelligence

Print Friendly and PDF

Anthony Gucciardi
NaturalSociety
May 1, 2012

pesticidefieldspraying 220x137 Pesticide Exposure Found to Lower IntelligencePesticides, ubiquitous among not only the food supply but farms and homes worldwide, have been found to be creating lasting changes in overall brain structure — changes that have been linked to lower intelligence levels and decreased cognitive function. Previously linked in scientific research to the massive obesity crisis, pesticides are now known to impact the mind in ways that are still not entirely understood. Despite these findings, they are continually touted as safe by the profit-hungry chemical industry.

The study, published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, observed pregnant mothers in New York who were exposed to a pesticide known as chlorpyrifos (CPF). Banned in 2001 from household use, the chemical is still used worldwide in agriculture. That’s right, this is a chemical that is not permitted to be used in your home, though it is perfectly fine to spray on your food. What the researchers found was that women who had higher levels of CPF had children with ”significant abnormalities” in brain structure compared to mothers with lower exposure levels.

Perhaps the most startling finding by the academic team is that all of the women in the study, of which there were 369 total, were actually below the US established thresholds of acute exposure. Therefore, even low to moderate levels of exposure can seriously impact brain function. A large amount of exposure could be even more dangerous and destructive.

Lead researcher Virginia Rauh, a professor at the Mailman School of Public Health, summarized the findings:

“Toxic exposure during this critical period can have far-reaching effects on brain development and behavioral functioning.”

The findings will certainly cause a ripple in the pesticide industry, though the larger issue is why this pesticide is being used in your food after it was banned from being used indoors. If the pesticide is damaging by simply being used in the same living space as human, how could it be considered safe to put into your body?


540x80 papaya leaf extract Pesticide Exposure Found to Lower Intelligence

Explore More:

  1. Massive Pesticide Exposure Inflating Global Obesity Crisis
  2. BPA Exposure During Pregnancy Found to Make Young Girls Hyperactive, Depressed
  3. Monsanto Pesticide Found to Infect Plants with AIDS-like Disease
  4. Human Exposure to BPA Grossly Underestimated
  5. Exposure to this Chemical is Linked to Birth Defects
  6. Magnetic Field Exposure May Cause Asthma
You can skip to the end and leave a response. Pinging is currently not allowed.

Leave a Reply

Powered by WordPress | Designed by: Premium WordPress Themes | Thanks to Themes Gallery, Bromoney and Wordpress Themes