Low Sex Ratios of Births in Areas at Risk from Air Pollution from Incinerators, as Shown by Geographical Analysis and 3-Dimensional Mapping

Previous research in environmental and occupational health has suggested that fluctuations in the sex ratios of births might provide a useful early warning to the possible health effects of toxins or other stresses in the environment. To examine further this hypothesis, we investigated the sex ratio...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Published in:International journal of epidemiology 1992-04, Vol.21 (2), p.311-319
Main Authors: WILLIAMS, F L R, LAWSON, A B, LLOYD, O L
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Air Pollution - adverse effects
Epidemiologic Methods
Female
Humans
Male
Refuse Disposal - methods
Risk Factors
Scotland - epidemiology
Sex Ratio
Statistics as Topic
Weather
Wind
Citations: Items that cite this one
Online Access:Get full text
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
Description
Summary:Previous research in environmental and occupational health has suggested that fluctuations in the sex ratios of births might provide a useful early warning to the possible health effects of toxins or other stresses in the environment. To examine further this hypothesis, we investigated the sex ratios of births in an area in central Scotland which contained two incineration plants. Analyses of the sex ratios, at various levels of geographical detail and using 3-dimensional mapping techniques, in the residential areas at risk from airborne pollution from these incinerators showed locations with statistically significant excesses of female births.
ISSN:0300-5771
1464-3685
DOI:10.1093/ije/21.2.311