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PANUPS: Herbicides & Infant Health
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P A N U P S
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Pesticide Action Network
North America
Updates Service
http://www.panna.org/panna/
EMAIL: panna@panna.org
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Herbicides Linked to Infant Health Problems
July 8, 1997
The herbicides atrazine, cyanazine and metolachlor may be
linked to a range of adverse health effects, including
respiratory distress, cerebral palsy and impaired
development. According to a recent study of drinking water
contamination in Iowa, these three herbicides were each
associated with higher community levels of intrauterine
growth retardation (slow fetal growth resulting in low birth
weight) among newborns. The researchers said that slow fetal
growth is a predictor of increased infant mortality and is
the second leading known cause of fetal death.
The researchers pointed out that this study is based on data
at the community level rather than on data collected from
individuals, and stressed that their findings should be
considered preliminary until more detailed epidemiological
studies on individual exposure levels are carried out.
However, they stated that previous studies have indicated
herbicides can cause adverse effects on growth and
development in laboratory animals and that atrazine has been
linked to endocrine disruption. These studies suggest that
the reported link in Iowa between herbicide consumption and
slow fetal growth is biologically plausible.
The study examined 13 communities in southern Iowa served by
the Rathbun Regional Water Association, a water system that
supplies drinking water exclusively from the Rathbun
reservoir. It compared levels of contaminants in the Rathbun
communities' water with drinking water from other communities
in southern Iowa. The communities were similar in population
size, education level, income and other demographic
variables.
Between 1984-1990, drinking water in the Rathbun system had
more positive detections of alachlor, atrazine, cyanazine,
metolachlor and 2,4-D than drinking water in other
communities surveyed. The mean level of atrazine in Rathbun
was 2.2 micrograms/liter during this period compared to 0.8
micrograms/liter for other surface water supplies examined.
For cyanazine, the difference was 1.4. micrograms/liter in
Rathbun compared to 0.7 micrograms/liter in other surface
waters.
The study also compared birth records of babies born to
mothers living in communities served by the Rathbun reservoir
with babies whose mothers lived in the other southern Iowa
communities. Researchers found that communities in southern
Iowa served by the Rathbun reservoir had a higher rate of
slow fetal growth than the other communities included in the
study. During 1984 to 1990, the percentage of live births
with slow fetal growth was 11.2% in the Rathbun communities
compared to a range of 6.4%-6.9% in the other communities.
Statistical analyses revealed that atrazine, matolachlor and
cyanazine were each significant predictors of community rates
of slow fetal growth. The researchers stated that a strong
causal relationship cannot be inferred, however, owing to
limitations in the study design.
Atrazine, cyanazine and metolachlor are widely used
herbicides in the U.S. According to a recent review of
pesticide use in the North American Great Lakes Basin,
metolachlor, atrazine and cyanazine are, respectively, the
first, second and seventh most used pesticides by weight in
the region. Due to concerns that atrazine and cyanazine pose
serious health and environmental risks, the U.S.
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) put them in Special
Review to examine their hazards and benefits in 1994.
Cyanazine was subsequently removed from Special Review
because it is being phased out -- DuPont, its manufacturer,
is withdrawing all uses in the U.S. by the end of 2002. EPA
expects to complete atrazine's Special Review by 1999. EPA
considers atrazine, cyanazine and metolachlor to be "possible
human carcinogens."
Sources: Intrauterine Growth Retardation in Iowa Communities
with Herbicide-Contaminated Drinking Water Supplies,
Environmental Health Perspectives, Vol. 105, No. 3, March
1997; Reducing Reliance on Pesticides in Great Lakes Basin
Agriculture, 1997, World Wildlife Fund; Jeff Morris, special
review manager, EPA, personal communication, July 7, 1997;
U.S. EPA Office of Pesticide Programs List of Chemicals
Evaluated for Carcinogenic Potential, February 19, 1997.
Contact: PANNA
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