Effects of Pesticide Exposure on Developmental Task Performance in Indian Children

Abstract

This paper presents the results of an investigation into chronic effects of pesticides on rural children in India. The study assessed the effect of pesticide exposure on the abilities of children to perform developmental tasks. The research subjects were divided into six study groups (high pesticide exposure with multiple exposures to multiple compounds), matched with five control groups (minimal pesticide exposure). In all, 1,648 children were individually tested using a rapid assessment tool that measured children’s memory, stamina, analytical, motor, and tactile perception abilities through various games and activities. The study controlled for major confounding factors such as socio-economic background, maternal education, schooling, media exposure, and the like. In more than 80 percent of the tasks tested, children heavily exposed to pesticides performed significantly worse than the less-exposed children.