Atrazine Contamination of Drinking Water and Adverse Birth Outcomes in Community Water Systems with Elevated Atrazine in Ohio, 2006–2008

Kirsten S. Almberg, Mary E. Turyk, Rachael M. Jones, Kristin Rankin, Sally Freels and Leslie T. Stayner
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Kirsten S. Almberg: Environmental and Occupational Health Sciences Division, School of Public Health, University of Illinois at Chicago, 1603 W. Taylor Street, Chicago, IL 60612, USA
Mary E. Turyk: Epidemiology and Biostatistics Division, School of Public Health, University of Illinois at Chicago, 1603 W. Taylor Street, Chicago, IL 60607, USA
Rachael M. Jones: Environmental and Occupational Health Sciences Division, School of Public Health, University of Illinois at Chicago, 1603 W. Taylor Street, Chicago, IL 60612, USA
Kristin Rankin: Epidemiology and Biostatistics Division, School of Public Health, University of Illinois at Chicago, 1603 W. Taylor Street, Chicago, IL 60607, USA
Sally Freels: Epidemiology and Biostatistics Division, School of Public Health, University of Illinois at Chicago, 1603 W. Taylor Street, Chicago, IL 60607, USA
Leslie T. Stayner: Epidemiology and Biostatistics Division, School of Public Health, University of Illinois at Chicago, 1603 W. Taylor Street, Chicago, IL 60607, USA

IJERPH, 2018, vol. 15, issue 9, 1-14

Abstract: Atrazine, a common water contaminant in the U.S., has been associated with adverse birth outcomes in previous studies. This study aimed to determine if atrazine concentrations in drinking water are associated with adverse birth outcomes including small for gestational age (SGA), term low birth weight (term LBW), very low birth weight (VLBW), preterm birth (PTB), and very preterm birth (VPTB). This study included 14,445 live singleton births from Ohio communities served by 22 water systems enrolled in the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s Atrazine Monitoring Program between 2006 and 2008. Mean gestational and trimester-specific atrazine concentrations were calculated. Significantly increased odds of term LBW birth was associated with atrazine exposure over the entire gestational period (OR 1.27, 95% CI 1.10, 1.45), as well as the first (OR 1.20, 95% CI 1.08, 1.34) and second trimesters (OR 1.13, 95% CI 1.07, 1.20) of pregnancy. We observed no evidence of an association between atrazine exposure via drinking water and SGA, VLBW, PTB, or VPTB. Our results suggest that atrazine exposure is associated with reduced birth weight among term infants and that exposure to atrazine in drinking water in early and mid-pregnancy may be most critical for its toxic effects on the fetus.

Keywords: atrazine; community water system; low birth weight; preterm birth; small for gestational age; water contamination; endocrine disruptor (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2018
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (1)

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