National Children’s Study to Feature EPA Researchers
Washington, D.C. — The National Children’s Study, which will follow a representative sample of 100,000 children from before birth to age 21 on the effects of environmental and genetic factors on child and human health in the United States, will feature input from three EPA-funded researchers.
The research will collect data to prevent and treat the widespread diseases of diabetes, heart disease, obesity, autism, and birth defects. The National Institutes of Health (NIH) made the announcement of the 22 research awardees last week.
The EPA representatives in the study are:
- Dr. Irva Hertz-Picciotto — Lead investigator for two ground-breaking projects on autism at the University of California/Davis Center for Children’s Environmental Health. Both studies are the largest of their kind in the U.S., and examine the genetic and environmental differences between autistic and non autistic children.
- Dr. Elaine Faustman — Principal researcher in the Center for Child Environmental Health Risks Research at the University of Washington. The Center works with community groups in Yakima Valley to better understand childrens’ susceptibilities to agricultural pesticides and promote effective risk management and exposure prevention strategies.
- Dr. Philip Landrigan — Co-director of the Mount Sinai Center for Children’s Environmental Health and the 2006 recipient of the prestigious EPA Children’s Environmental Health Champion award. Now in its ninth year, the Mount Sinai Children’s Center continues to investigate environmental risks to children in the urban environment and promotes policies to reduce or eliminate exposure.
The National Children’s Study has been in development since 2000, and results are expected to be published starting in 2013. For more information about the National Children’s Study, visit http://www.nationalchildrensstudy.gov.
