Researcher Links Agricultural Compounds to Birth Defects

A researcher from the Texas A&M Health Science Center School of Public Health has found that three compounds that are often found in wells in rural agricultural areas may be linked to birth defects when the mother drinks the water during early pregnancy. Jean D. Brender, R.N., Ph.D., says that women who are pregnant should be wary of three contaminants (nitrates, atrazine and arsenic) that may be found in drinking water from wells where agricultural runoff occurs. (Vital Record)