New Study Bolsters Link Between Autism and Air Pollution

January 28, 2015- Pregnant women may nearly double their risk of giving birth to a child with autism by inhaling smog from vehicles or smoke stacks, according to a new Harvard study.

The new research supports previous scientific findings that link air pollution to autism. It offers fresh insights by showing women in their third trimesters appear most vulnerable if they breathe in elevated levels of tiny particles emitted by power plants, fires, and automobiles.

"We found an association that was specific to pregnancy and especially to the third trimester, identifying a window, which might shed a light on processes that are happening that can lead to autism," said Marc Weisskopf, the report's senior author and associate professor of environmental and occupational epidemiology at the Harvard School of Public Health. So much neuronal growth occurs during those three months, he said — "a time when brain development could be affected."

The higher the exposure rate, the greater the risk, he found. The findings appear online in the journal Environmental Health Perspectives.

Read the full nbcnews.com post here.

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