Exposure to pesticides used on common kid-friendly foods – including frozen blueberries, fresh strawberries and celery – appears to boost the chances that children will be diagnosed with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, or ADHD, new research shows. Youngsters with high levels of pesticide residue in their urine, particularly from widely used types of insecticide such as malathion, were more likely to have ADHD, the behavior disorder that often disrupts school and social life, scientists in the United States and Canada found. Kids with higher-than-average levels of one pesticide marker were nearly twice as likely to be diagnosed with ADHD as children who showed no traces of the poison. ‘I think it’s fairly significant. A doubling is a strong effect, said Maryse F. Bouchard, a researcher at the University of Montreal in Quebec and lead author of the study published Monday in the journal Pediatrics. The take-home message for parents, according to Bouchard: ‘I would say buy organic as much as possible, she said. ‘I would also recommend washing fruits and vegetables as much as possible. Diet is a major source of pesticide exposure in children, according to the National Academy of Sciences, and much […]