Common insecticide may hurt child IQ

[The Straight Story]

Common insecticide may hurt child IQ

Researchers at the Columbia University's Mailman School of Public Health found that an ingredient in insecticides can have a negative effect on the IQ of children.
Monday, February 14, 2011


NEW YORK, Feb. 12 (UPI) -- An ingredient in a common insecticide may delay child development, researchers at the Columbia University's Mailman School of Public Health found.

Lead researcher Megan Horton of the Mailman School of Public Health says the study involved 725 black and Dominican pregnant women living in upper Manhattan and the South Bronx.

The insecticide permethrin was selected because it is one of the most common pyrethroid insecticides as well as the most commonly sold pesticide, Horton says. Piperonyl butoxide, known as PBO, is a common additive in pyrethroid formulations.

The study involved 342 women, who were studied for permethrin exposure in their indoor air during pregnancy; 272 for permethrin in maternal and umbilical cord plasma and 230 were evaluated for exposure to PBO.

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