|
|
|
An article published in the journal Pediatrics has found that exposure to Bisphenol A (BPA) during gestation affects 3-year-old girls’ ability to regulate behaviour and emotions. Researchers based at Harvard School of Public Health, Harvard University, Boston, Massachusetts, US, used a prospective birth cohort of 244 mothers and their 3-year-old children from Cincinatti, Ohio, US. Urine samples were measured at 16 and 26 weeks of gestation in the mothers, and at 1, 2 and 3 years of age in the children, both male and female. Behaviour and executive function in the children were measured using the Behaviour Assessment System for Children 2 (BASC-2) and the Behaviour rating Inventory of Executive Function-Preschool (BRIEF-P). BPA was detected in more than 97% of all samples, and with adjustment for variables, each 10-fold increase in BPA was associated with more anxious and depressed behaviour, as well as poorer emotional control and inhibition. Gestational BPA associations scored 9 to 12 point increases in both tests among girls, but were null or negative among boys. Associations between childhood BPA levels and neurobehaviour were also null, and not influenced by gender. Clinicians may advise people to reduce their exposure to certain consumer products containing BPA, but as yet how this would benefit children is unclear. Source: Pediatrics
Click here for more research on chemical sensitivity First Published in October 2011 |
