It's been suggested in the past, but a new study provides sound evidence that insecticides may have adverse effects on children.
Researchers in Quebec found that insecticides commonly used in households may be associated with behavior problem in children. The study is the first to investigate potential human health effects of pyrethroids, which are used in more than 3,500 commercial products, including flea bombs and roach spray, the Scientific American reported.
"Children are at greatest risk from pesticide toxicity because the developing brain is more susceptible to neurotoxicants and they interact with their environment in particular ways such as frequent hand-to-mouth behavior and outside play," researchers wrote.
During the study, the urine of 779 Canadian children between the ages of 6 and 11 was tested, and their parent answered questions about each child's behavior.
Ninety-seven percent of the children had traces of pyrethoid breakdown products in their urine 91 percent had traces of organophosphates, another class of pesticides.
A 10-fold increase in urinary levels of pyrethroid was associated with a doubling in the odds of a child scoring high for parent-reported behavioral problems, such as inattention and hyperactivity.
According to the Scientific American, researchers found no link between behavior scores and levels of organophosphate breakdown products.
Pyrethroids have been widely-touted as safer than organophosphates because they're a synthetic adaptation of a compound found naturally in chrysanthemum flowers.
Use of pyrethroids has increased dramatically in recent years as they replaced organophosphate pesticides, which are being phased out due to concerns about children's health. Prenatal exposure to organophosphates has been linked to neurodevelopment delays, lower IQ scores and attention problems.
These findings raise some questions about the safety of pyrethroids, the Scientific American reported. According to the researchers, there have been few other studies investigating neurobehavioral outcomes associated with pyrethroids.
Exposure to these compounds, which kill insects by interfering with their nervous systems, is widespread because they're used inside homes and schools, in municipal mosquito control and on farms.
However, there's very little data on the potential health effects of pyrethroids in children. One study of 348 mother-child pairs in New York City found lower development scores in toddlers who had been exposed to pyrethroids in the womb. In studies with young laboratory animals, low levels of some pyrethroids have affected nervous system development.
The recent study does not prove that pyrethroids cause behavior problems, but the authors said their findings suggest that more research is needed to determine their potential effects on children.
