Mystery of babies with no arms and hands – are pesticides to blame?
In France, physicians are faced with a puzzle. In two regions of the country between 2009 and 2014, babies have been born without arms or hands. Now, eleven additional cases have been known. A genetic Defect is excluded, the debt could be pesticides.
Until the birth of her son Ryan, eight years old, was lost the pregnancy in the case of Mélanie Vitry easily. But when Ryan came into the world, was missing a Hand. "My husband Jonathan was ohnmächtig", the mother told the TV station France Télevision. The Doctors had no explanation. But did you know: Within a radius of 17 kilometers, there were seven children like Ryan. All born between 2009 and 2014.
"Umwelfaktoren could spielen" a role;
It is a phenomenon that is reminiscent of the thalidomide cases in Germany: babies born with malformations of the extremities to the world. Seven cases between 2009 and 2014 in the West of France and on the Atlantic coast registered. Now the health authority Santé Publique, France announced that between 2000 and 2014, an additional eleven babies were born without arms and hands close to the Swiss border.
The News will have alarmed the Public. There is speculation that toxins in water, food or air are to blame for the mysterious malformations. Environment Minister Agnès Buzyn said to the news channel BFM TV: "Environment factors may play a role. Maybe it depends on what the women eat, drink, or have inhaled."
All the mothers lived near fields
After the number of births had been classified with missing limbs for a long time as not striking, are now new investigations started. "We need to understand what the individual families verbindet", the Minister declared. First results will be announced at the end of January 2019. Hospital statistics show that in 1.7 of 10,000 births malformations of the limbs occur. Behind it genetic Defects or toxins can put. 
Twitter / francetvinfo.fr / Mathieu Mondoloni Melinda Mostini with their two children. The seven-year-old Leo came without the left Hand to the world.
The also Melinda Mostini, mother of little Leo, the left Hand since birth is missing, confirmed. "A doctor came to us and asked questions about our eating habits, what medicines we take, what cleaning agents we use. But there were no Matches with the other affected families. We wondered at the time if it has to do with the environment. With fertilisers, pesticides…"
Coincidence or scandal?
The Epidemiologist Emmanuelle Amar is alerted. She works for the Remera, a Register, the antenatal malformations working in the Region. And in the 17-mile Radius the Figures are 58 times higher than normal. "We interviewed all the mothers in great detail to your living habits. The only thing they have in common: they all live on Land, in the midst of Feldern", the expert compared to France Télevision.
The authorities were informed in 2011 by the Register. But there is nothing happened. Only after the TV report, they responded. "The probability that all of these cases are random, is very low. This looks like a scandal aus", Amar says. It assumes that all mothers were exposed during pregnancy to pesticides or pesticide.
Also in the case of animals in the Region, it came to malformations
"Scientists have now put on a table and investigate. Which molecule is used in agriculture, can lead to the malformation of the arms and hands in the womb? Is used something in the feed or somewhere else? And all the mothers need to meet and talk to each other. Through such exchanges, the malformation of the foetus due to the sedative thalidomide and thalidomide festgestellt" was at that time in Germany;, the Doctor told the ARD.
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