Exposure to industrial pollution during pregnancy may influence a grandchild's neurological development

MADRID, 21 (EUROPA PRESS)

Exposure to industrial pollution during pregnancy can influence the neurological development of a grandchild, according to a study from the University of Utah (United States).

A child is at greater risk of intellectual disability if his grandmother lived near industrial facilities during a parent's pregnancy. However, the probability was higher with exposure to the child's mother's pregnant maternal grandmother. Likewise, a greater density of industrial facilities corresponded with a greater risk for the grandchild.

Previous research shows that a child's risk of intellectual disability is higher when he or she is directly exposed to toxins in the womb, for example, if the mother accidentally ingests lead or mercury. Now, this research led by University of Utah sociology department professor Sara Grineski links the risk of intellectual disability to prenatal exposure to ozone, suspended particles, and industrial pollution.

To conduct this study, researchers used the Utah Autism and Developmental Disabilities Registry and the Utah Population Database to identify children diagnosed with intellectual disabilities and a population without a diagnosis record, born in any county in Utah between 2000 and 2014. The database provided birth certificates with the residential addresses of the children's parents and grandparents, allowing the researchers to assess the degree of industrialization of the neighborhood during pregnancy.

Likewise, they used the North American Industrial Classification System codes to estimate the possible health risks associated with this type of facility. They calculated the density of facilities in a radius of 3 kilometers and 5 kilometers during the pregnancy of the mother and grandmother.

“Industrial activity often produces concentrated emissions of toxic pollutants that can persist in soil, air, and water for decades,” says Roger Renteria, a doctoral candidate in the sociology department at the University of Utah. “Linking facility data to historical residential addresses makes industrial exposure data especially valuable for studying multigenerational health impacts, something that is rarely possible with other environmental risks.”

Thus, the author of the study concludes that “medical professionals, government agencies and anyone concerned about the protection of future generations must take seriously the multigenerational impact of toxic substances.”