Researchers at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai have found that exposure to lead during pregnancy and early childhood may accelerate memory decay in children. The study, published in Science Advances, used a delayed matching-to-sample task (DMTS) to assess how prenatal and early childhood blood lead levels affect working memory in children aged 6 to 8.
The study revealed a link between higher childhood lead levels and faster forgetting rates using a nonlinear modified power function model. Higher lead exposure at ages 4–6 was significantly associated with faster forgetting rates, even at low median blood lead levels (~1.7 µg/dL). Additionally, older children and those whose mother’s IQ was higher showed better memory retention.
Katherine Svensson, PhD, MS, from the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai stated, “The nonlinear modified power function has been validated in previous animal and human studies but is now applied in the field of environmental health.” This approach allows for assessing the effects of environmental exposures on children’s working memory.
Jamil M. Lane, PhD, MPH emphasized the study’s innovative use of operant tests like DMTS which are common in animal toxicology but rare in human studies. “This translational approach is a key innovation of our work,” he said.
Robert Wright, MD, MPH highlighted the importance of memory formation stating that “this paper breaks new ground by showing how environmental chemicals can interfere with the rate of memory formation.”
The study suggests that even low-level lead exposure can impact cognitive functions crucial for academic and social success. It calls for continued investment in lead prevention efforts especially in overburdened communities.
Funding for this research came from various NIH grants including T32HD049311 and R01ES014930 among others. The full study can be accessed through DOI: 10.1126/sciadv.adq4495.
