Effects of war pollution on Iraqi children: Neurodevelopmental disorders and birth defects

In 2010 the U.S. Congress banned the use of open-air burn-pits on U.S. military bases. By then these burn-pits, which could be up to 10 acres in size, had been used to burn and dispose of a wide range of materials including plastics, electronics, explosives, and even human body parts. The burning of these materials released a diverse array of heavy metals to the global atmosphere and the local environment. Elderly individuals, pregnant women, and unborn children were the most vulnerable to these toxics, and health professionals across Iraq have reported increasing numbers of children born with neurodevelopmental disorders and birth defects. It is widely accepted that exposure to these environmental pollutants can disrupt neurodevelopmental processes and lead to abnormal sensory, motor, and cognitive functions in growing fetuses and young children.

A recent study published in the journal Environmental Monitoring Assessment — which sought to substantiate these claims in Iraq — examines seven mothers and two of their children, one with and one without neurodevelopmental disorders, to determine the most influential toxics causing neurodevelopmental disorders in Hawija, Iraq. The study uses two approaches to study the links between war pollution and public health: 1.  Questionnaires to understand the family background and to determine possible uranium exposure, and 2. Hair samples treatment to measure the level of various metals in the hair samples. While the sample size is small, the study is the first of its kind in this part of Iraq and provides valuable information on the effects of war pollution on Iraqi children.

The children with neurodevelopmental disorders participating in the study suffered brain damage, epilepsy, continuous body seizures, missing fingers or toes, and disfigured limbs. The mothers — seven women between ages of 22 and 34 — reported that their homes were bombed at least once during the war and recalled having cold and flu-like symptoms, fatigue, intermittent fevers, disorientation and confusion, headaches, and recurring or continuous pain after bombardment. While the data suggests that the participants were exposed to variable levels of war pollution, their uranium exposure appears to be low based on both the questionnaire and the hair samples.

Hair samples are used to determine children's exposure to various metals and to compare the levels between children in Iraq and Iran, between children in Hawija and Fallujah, and between children with and without neurodevelopmental disorders. Titanium and magnesium levels are significantly higher for the Iraqi children in Hawija than for Iranian children living at the Iraqi border. Comparisons with previous studies show that children with neurodevelopmental disorders in Fallujah, Iraq have 3.7 times higher levels of lead in their hair samples than children with neurodevelopmental disorders in Hawija. Titanium levels are 1.3 times higher for children with neurodevelopmental disorders, and magnesium levels are 1.9 times higher for children without neurodevelopmental disorders. Children with neurodevelopmental disorders also show elevated lead, cadmium, and arsenic levels. 

These results explain three major relationships between war pollution and public health in Iraq. Exposure to titanium and magnesium is high; this is also reflected in the titanium and magnesium-rich dust found in the lungs of U.S. occupational soldiers who served in Iraq and Afghanistan. The areas which had fewer military bases in their vicinity exhibit lower metal levels in hair samples and fewer children with neurodevelopmental disorders; Fallujah, a city surrounded by military bases and a target of numerous bombings, reports a much higher number of children born with severe neurodevelopmental disorders. Unlike other metals, magnesium appears to be prevalent in children without neurodevelopmental disorders, and it has been proven to protect against brain damage and to reduce infant mortality in areas of widespread war pollution.  

This study helps to understand the scope of neurodevelopmental disorders in Iraq providing much needed information in a country where little data has been collected. It also highlights Iraq's desperate need for national registries to compile data from hospitals, clinics and health centers on children born with neurodevelopmental disorders and birth defects. Using this data, researchers can determine risk factors and develop intervention strategies to tackle war pollution and its effects on Iraqi children. 

[Photo copyright: Owen_Holdaway via Shutterstock]