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Pregnant women exposed to the widely used herbicide glyphosate may face an increased risk of premature birth, according to one of the largest studies ever to examine this link.
The study was led by NYU Langone Health and environmental pollution, Pregnant women with higher exposure to glyphosate, the active ingredient in the herbicide Roundup, were shown to have a significantly higher risk of premature spontaneous delivery. Previous studies have shown an association between glyphosate exposure and shorter gestation periods, but the New York University study is one of the largest to examine exposure during pregnancy and preterm birth in humans.
“We support that glyphosate exposure during pregnancy is widespread and may be associated with the risk of preterm birth. Even modest associations are important because pregnancy is a sensitive time and small risks can lead to large population effects,” Jesse Buckley, a professor of epidemiology at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, said in an email.
“Pregnancy is a delicate time, and small risks can lead to large population impacts.” — Jesse Buckley, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
Researchers collected urine samples from 1,450 women who gave birth between 2016 and 2019 and found that women who had high glyphosate levels during their second trimester were more likely to have spontaneous labor (meaning delivery naturally before 37 weeks rather than medically induced) compared to women with lower levels.
Preterm birth is the leading cause of neonatal morbidity and death. Premature babies can face a variety of health problems, including infections and long-term learning and developmental challenges.
The participants were scheduled to give birth in a New York City hospital, far from farmland, suggesting food exposure was likely. “You don’t have these people in agricultural areas where herbicide residues are heavily sprayed and dispersed into the air,” said Dr. Leonardo Trasande, lead author of the study and professor of pediatrics at New York University’s Grossman School of Medicine.
Buckley pointed out that glyphosate exposure is not necessarily avoidable. “Glyphosate exposure is fundamentally a systems problem. Real reductions require policy decisions about where and how glyphosate is used,” Buckley said. “Dietary habits can influence an individual’s exposure, but changes such as choosing organic foods are not equally available to everyone. Personal choices cannot replace upstream actions that prevent the risk of exposure in the first place.”
The investigation comes a month after the Supreme Court ruled in favor of Monsanto, now owned by Bayer, limiting consumer lawsuits against the pesticide company. The Monsanto v. Darnell decision held that pesticide companies cannot be held liable for omitting cancer warnings as long as the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) determines that the warnings are unnecessary.
In February, the Trump administration signed an executive order protecting glyphosate production. The order was widely criticized by public health and environmental groups.
A spokesperson for Rubeon, the Bayer subsidiary that manages glyphosate products, said the study reported a statistical association but did not provide evidence that glyphosate exposure caused preterm birth or other adverse pregnancy outcomes.
“Although an association with preterm birth has been reported, this publication does not provide sufficient information to assess whether the observed findings represent a causally related adverse health effect,” the statement said. “Also, glyphosate and AMPA levels in urine can fluctuate over time, so relying on limited sampling may have led to misclassification of participants’ exposure.”
Trazande believes the results presented in this study highlight the need for stronger regulations to protect the health of pregnant women and infants, who are particularly vulnerable to chemicals in the environment. “It will certainly further support the need for change in what we eat and how we produce (food), not only at an individual level but also at a societal level.”
Featured image by Eduardo Ramos unsplash
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Julie Zenderoudi is an editorial intern at The New Lede. She is a Brooklyn-based science journalist and master’s student in New York University’s Science, Health, and Environmental Reporting Program (SHERP). She previously worked for Canada’s public broadcaster CBC News, producing interview segments and commentary videos for the national broadcaster. Her work has appeared in Slate, Offrange, Prism, The Brooklyn Paper, and more.
