Pesticide Exposure Links to Stillbirth Risk

Researchers compared Arizona pest control records with birth certificates of babies born to mothers from 2006 to 2020. They then estimated the stillbirth risks of living within 500 meters (about one-third of a mile) of the use of 27 different pesticides during a 90-day preconception period or the first trimester.
Because the chemical configuration of pesticides within the same class differs, she emphasized the importance of considering individual pesticides rather than pesticide class exposure.
It is important to note that while some pesticides were not specifically implicated, they could still be a health threat to the mother and fetus, stated the researchers.
Drift from pesticide spraying may explain how living as far as one-third of a mile from an agricultural site could result in significant exposure.
“Before conception or very early in pregnancy, a mother may have high levels of pyrethroids, organophosphates, and/or carbamates, along with other pesticides and chemicals in her body, Robert E. Herron, an independent researcher not connected to the study, told The Epoch Times.
Herron added that during pregnancy, these chemicals can enter a woman’s bloodstream and cross the placental wall to harm the developing fetus. Alternatively, they can enter the fetus through the umbilical cord, the structure that provides nourishment.
“Maintaining air filters, vacuuming and dusting regularly, and avoiding tracking in dust and dirt from outdoors by using doormats are helpful measures.”
The toxins in his study were fat-soluble, which can act similarly to only one class of the pesticides in the AJE study, (the other two classes were water-soluble). However, Herron told The Epoch Times that virtually every person is exposed to hundreds of chemicals at different points in time, which means they have a toxic soup of both fat- and water-soluble toxins in their body.
“The chemicals are not only damaging in themselves, but some can interact with each other,” he said. “In a world full of toxic chemicals, being a fetus is probably the most dangerous phase of life due to their delicate, defenseless, and vulnerable state.”