Autism Is Twice As Likely In Children Living Near High Air Pollution Areas

http://thinkprogress.org/climate/2013/06/18/2166631/june-18-news-autism-is-twice-as-likely-in-children-living-near-high-air-pollution-areas/

By Ryan Koronowski on Jun 18, 2013

The largest study to date that examines the link between air pollution and autism found that women living in high-pollution areas were twice as likely to have a child with the disorder. [Bloomberg]

Researchers seeking the roots of autism have linked the disorder to chemicals in air pollution and, in a separate study, found that language difficulties of the disorder may be due to a disconnect in brain wiring.

Researchers from Harvard University’s School of Public Health found that pregnant women exposed to high levels of diesel particulates or mercury were twice as likely to have an autistic child compared with peers in low-pollution areas. The findings, published today in Environmental Health Perspectives, are from the largest U.S. study to examine the ties between air pollution and autism.

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