In 1990, high levels of multiple pesticides were found in the cord blood of newborns and in breast milk. The children of the agrarian region were compared to children living in the foothills, where pesticide use is avoided. No differences were found in growth patterns. For their assistance in making this study possible. This work was funded in part by the Bureau of Applied Research in Anthropology, University of Arizona, Direccion de Investigacion y Estudias de Postgrado, Instituto Tecriol gico de Sonora and Sccretaria de Salud Publica, Sonora.
Major difficulties exist in evaluating the effects of pesticide exposure on children.
One reason is that within the United States, the majority of children tend to differ in physical, environmental, cultural, and social experiences that influence growth and development. Genetic backgrounds differ, creating morphologic variation within and between groups of individuals. Families move into and out of areas, complicating issues regarding historical and present exposures to contaminants, both for the types and degree of bodily intake. Taken a step further, variations in parental exposure complicate the issues regarding the effects of contaminants in creating genetic aberrations in sperm and ova, plus the amount of maternal transference of pesticides and other man-made chemicals during pregnancy and lactation. Frequently, these factors are used to question, criticize, and even discount research Findings involving the impact of pesticides on a child's growth and development.