Are pesticides in food making your kids sick?

Concerns that contaminants in foods-such as trace pesticide residues-can be harmful to health have helped propagate the growth of the organic food movement perhaps as much as devotion to "going green" and protecting the planet. That has at times caused difficulties for a nutrition specialist like me, because organic and nutritious are not the same. Nutrititious means good for the health of the person; organic does not mean that, as evidenced by the fact that gummy bears may be organic, and broccoli may not be.

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But now comes an important new chapter in this on-going story. A study led by researchers at the Department of Environmental and Occupational Health, University of Montreal, Quebec, Canada, examined a representative sample of over 1,100 children in the U.S. between the ages of 8 and 15, and found higher
levels of pesticide metabolites in the urine of those with attention deficit disorder.In an observational study such as this, the association between A and B-in this case, higher exposure to pesticides and higher likelihood of ADD/ADHD-cannot be taken for cause and effect. It may be that both A and B happen in the same reason because of ... C. For instance, if children with attention issues tend, on average, to get less exercise, and exercise effects the metabolism of pesticides, then exercise could be the real issue here.

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But such provisos notwithstanding, experts are taking this association seriously-as well they should. The association between organochlorine pesticides, which affect the nervous system, and ADD/ADHD makes sense. And the association was clear in this new study despite a good attempt to control for other factors.

So you should take these findings seriously as well. Support the planet, and possibly protect your child's brain, by buying organic if you can-when it matters most. (See this list of the 12 dirtiest foods you should try to buy organic). Keep eating fruits and vegetables-and feeding them to your kids-but be sure to give them all a good rinse. And while at it, do what you can to ensure your child a good daily dose of physical activity.

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Bottom line: Pesticides residues may or may not cause ADD/ADHD. But they are implicated by association in this new study, and we parents should all deem them guilty until and unless they are proven innocent.

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