A study conducted by three Universities across the nation is looking at the long-term effects of organochlorines on pregnant women, and more specifically their offspring. Studies conducted over a ten year period show that women who had higher exposures to pesticides during pregnancy, gave birth to children who exhibited lower I.Q. scores during early childhood. In addition to the low I.Q. scores, it is expected that the children who were exposed to greater levels of prenatal pesticide exposure are going to experience additional problems as they age. While the findings from this study are rather shocking, women can reduce their exposure to organochlorines by taking precautionary measures, one of the most important of which includes consuming organic foods (which are grown without organophosphate pesticides).
The Food Industry in general is known to use quite a bit of sketchy behavior when it comes to labelling certain food products and keeping the general public unaware that chemicals like this are so widely found in our foods. It scares me to think that many pregnant women are out there purchasing vegetables from the grocery store thinking they are feeding themselves one of the best foods, when it fact it could be more harmful to their babies if the food is not properly washed and rid of these pesticides before being consumed.
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