Pesticide For Zika-Carrying Mosquitoes In Florida Linked To Autism Risk

Is pesticide spraying to kill mosquitoes causing autism? In the least, the government is spraying larvicides with great impunity in many neighborhoods throughout the U.S. in order to ‘combat Zika’ and other diseases said to be caused by mosquitoes. Little is known of the true ramifications for such hackneyed actions, but one study suggests that […]

Christina Sarich | Underground Reporter
By Christina Sarich | Underground Reporter
Dallas County Mosquito Lab microbiologist Spencer Lockwood sorts mosquitos collected in a trap in Hutchins, Texas, that had been set up in Dallas County near the location of a confirmed Zika virus infection.

Is pesticide spraying to kill mosquitoes causing autism? In the least, the government is spraying larvicides with great impunity in many neighborhoods throughout the U.S. in order to ‘combat Zika’ and other diseases said to be caused by mosquitoes. Little is known of the true ramifications for such hackneyed actions, but one study suggests that in

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Science Proves Birth Defects Linked To Zika, But There’s More To The Story

Recent studies suggest the link between the Zika virus and microcephaly is stronger than previously believed.

Claire Bernish
By Claire Bernish
Sophia, who is two weeks old and was born with microcephaly, sleeps before her physical therapy session at the Pedro I hospital in Campina Grande, Paraiba state, Brazil, Friday, Feb. 12, 2016. The Zika virus, spread by the Aedes aegypti mosquito, is suspected to be linked with occurrences of microcephaly in new born babies, but no link has been proven yet. (AP Photo/Felipe Dana)

Despite reports to the contrary over the past few weeks, recent studies suggest the link between the Zika virus and microcephaly is stronger than previously believed. In another new development, the World Health Organization announced the sexual transmission of Zika virus happens with more frequency than was first imagined. Both developments led

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Is Microcephaly In Children Caused By The Zika Virus Or By Pesticides?

Toxic pesticides are used extensively in Brazil’s north-east, where almost a third of cases of microcephaly have occurred so far.

Dr. Cesar Chelala
By Dr. Cesar Chelala
Sophia, who is two weeks old and was born with microcephaly, sleeps before her physical therapy session at the Pedro I hospital in Campina Grande, Paraiba state, Brazil, Friday, Feb. 12, 2016. The Zika virus, spread by the Aedes aegypti mosquito, is suspected to be linked with occurrences of microcephaly in new born babies, but no link has been proven yet. (AP Photo/Felipe Dana)

At the end of October 2015, the Brazilian state of Pernambuco, located in the northeast of the country, started reporting a dramatic increase in the number of babies born with microcephaly, a condition characterized by a shrunken head and brain. The cases in Pernambuco were soon followed by similar ones in the nearby states of Bahía and

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Larvicide, Not Zika Virus, Behind Spike In Microcephaly, Doctors Groups Warn

One Brazilian state halted use of the chemical which kills mosquitoes in drinking water, and agribusiness giant Monsanto distanced itself from rumors of ties to maker of the larvicide.

MintPress News Desk
By MintPress News Desk
Elielson tries to calm down his baby brother Jose Wesley, in Bonito, Pernambuco state, Brazil. Jose Wesley struggles to feed, something common in children with neurological disorders like microcephaly. (AP Photo/Felipe Dana)

RIO GRANDE DO SUL, Brazil --- Doctors’ groups from Brazil and Argentina warn that it may be a larvicide used to kill mosquitos -- not the Zika virus -- that’s behind a sudden spike in cases of microcephaly in Brazilian newborns. Most medical authorities, including those from the Brazilian government and the World Health Organization, suspect

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