Endometriosis-where the lining of the uterus attaches to other organs, and which may cause infertility-can be triggered by pesticides. They increase the risk by up to 70 per cent.
Two pesticides in particular-beta-hexachlorocyclohexane and mirex-seem to cause the disease in women, increasing the risk from 30 per cent to 70 per cent, say researchers at the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Centre.
Strangely, the two organochlorine pesticides have been banned in the US for several decades, and yet high levels of the chemicals were detected in the blood samples of 248 women who had recently been diagnosed with endometriosis.
The pesticides affect estrogen production, which is also associated with endometriosis. The disease affects around 10 per cent of women, and causes chronic pain, painful periods and sometimes infertility.
(Source: Environmental Health Perspectives, 2013; doi: 10.1289/ehp.1306648)
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