Solvents provoke autism in children

Autism in children due to solvent exposure of parents

14/03/2012

Contact with solvents can cause autism in children of those affected. This is the result of a specialist magazine „Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders“ featured study by US researchers.

Those who frequently come into contact with paints, paints and other solvent-containing substances expose their offspring to a significantly increased risk of autism. US scientists have found in a pilot study that the parents of autistic children were particularly often exposed to a high solvent exposure in the workplace.

Solvent contact of parents examined more closely
Researchers led by Erin McCanlies of the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, Atlanta, have studied 174 families in their study. 93 families in which children with autism lived, 81 families with unaffected children as a control group. In telephone interviews, the parents of both groups were interviewed about possible contact with solvents or chemicals containing chemicals in the run-up to pregnancy (three months before the date of their birth), during pregnancy and until weaning. In addition, the scientists directly recorded the stress level of the parents at their respective workplace. Thus, for the first time, there is a study that more closely analyzes a possible relationship between the contact of expectant mothers with solvents and the autism risk of the offspring. Because the pollutants can be brought home through the partner's work clothes or work materials and then transferred to the mothers, the current investigation also takes into account the fathers' occupational activity, write Erin McCanlies and colleagues.

Correlation between parent activity and children's autism risk
As part of their investigation, the US researchers found a clear link between the professional activity of parents and the risk of autism in their children. For example, the parents of autistic children were much more likely to be exposed to increased solvent exposure for professional reasons. They came in contact with paint, varnish, xylene or other solvent-containing substances more often than the parents of the control group, the US scientists report. Although the results are limited in their significance due to the small sample of only 174 families, they provide clear evidence that occupational exposure to certain substances in the aetiology (theory of the causes of illness) of autism should be taken into account, according to the statement of Erin McCanlies and colleagues. The knowledge gained „therefore deserve further investigation“, Explained the US researchers.

Trigger of autism until today largely unclear
To date, the exact causes of autistic disorders in children remain largely unclear, although previous studies have already provided evidence of a possible association with environmental toxins and other pollutants. For example, Erin McCanlies and colleagues point out that older studies have shown, for example, an increased risk of autism in regions with an elevated concentration of volatile chlorine compounds and air pollutants. In addition, there is a suspicion that pesticides also have an impact on the development of autism, said the US researchers. In addition, according to the experts, genetic factors often play a key role in the development of autistic disorders. The current evidence of a link with the solvent burden of the parents, now provide a further starting point in the search for the triggers of autism, which, unlike the genetic predisposition would be directly influenced. (Fp)

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Picture: Rolf van Melis