Neurodevelopmental Disorders

Neurodevelopmental disorders are disabilities in the functioning of the brain that affect a child’s behaviour, memory, or ability to learn. These effects may result from exposure of the fetus or young child to certain environmental contaminants, though current data do not indicate the extent to which environmental contaminants contribute to overall rates of neurodevelopmental disorders in children. A child’s brain and nervous system are vulnerable to adverse impacts from pollutants because they go through a long developmental process beginning shortly after conception and continuing through adolescence.