Weird Science

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High Lithium in Drinking Water Substantially Increases Risk of Autism

Higher lithium concentrations in drinking water among pregnant women carry significant possibilities of raising the risk of autism among children, a new study has found.

The study, published in JAMA Pediatrics on April 3, looked into whether maternal exposure to lithium in drinking water is linked to autism spectrum disorder (ASD) in the offspring. Conducted in Denmark, the study analyzed 8,842 children diagnosed with ASD born between 2000 and 2013. Lithium levels in the water were categorized into four groups, with the first quartile representing the lowest lithium level and subsequent quartiles having higher concentrations of lithium.

Researchers found that high lithium levels in the second and third quartiles were associated with a 24 to 26 percent higher risk of autism compared to the first quartile. The risk in the fourth quartile was 46 percent higher.

“Estimated maternal prenatal exposure to lithium from naturally occurring drinking water sources in Denmark was associated with an increased ASD risk in the offspring. This study suggests that naturally occurring lithium in drinking water may be a novel environmental risk factor for ASD development that requires further scrutiny,” the study found.

Lithium, a naturally occurring trace element, is known to have mood-stabilizing effects. The element has been linked to cardiac malformations among newborns as well as miscarriages.

Lithium usually ends up in drinking water due to weathering of underground minerals. The level of the element in water is considered to be moderate to low in Denmark.
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“In the future, anthropogenic sources of lithium in water may become more widespread because of lithium battery use and disposal in landfills with the potential for groundwater contamination.”

Zeyan Liew, the first author of the study and an assistant professor of epidemiology at the Yale University School of Public Health, pointed out that earlier research done in Denmark had already shown that ingestion of lithium via drinking could affect the onset of adult-onset neuropsychiatric disorders.

The recent study also found that high lithium levels continued to pose a higher risk of autism diagnosis even when the data was divided up by subtypes of the disorder.

The link between lithium levels and autism risk was found to be slightly higher among individuals living in urban regions compared to rural areas and small towns.