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nfants who are exposed to common agricultural pesticides during pregnancy and in their first year of life are at an increased risk of autism spectrum disorder (ASD), according to data from a study headed by researchers at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA). Reporting their findings in The BMJ, UCLA associate professor Ondine S. von Ehrenstein, PhD, and colleagues suggest that the population-based case control study, which to their knowledge is the largest to have investigated pesticide exposure and ASD, supports “the need to avoid prenatal and infant exposure to pesticides to protect early brain development.”
