AP reports research evidence that air pollution changes fetal chromosomes, below.
Quite an approach-avoidance conflict for the religious right, I'd say.
Pollution Is Linked to Fetal Harm
By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
Published: February 16, 2005
by The Associated Press
Exposure to air pollution, even in the womb, may be linked to genetic changes associated with an increased risk of cancer, researchers said yesterday.
...Researchers found an increase of about 50 percent in the level of persistent genetic abnormalities among infants with high levels of exposure, said the study's senior author, Dr. Frederica P. Perera, director of the Columbia Center for Children's Environmental Health.
"We already knew that air pollutants significantly reduced fetal growth, but this is the first time we've seen evidence that they can change chromosomes in utero," Dr. Perera said, adding that the kind of genetic changes that occurred had been linked in other studies to increased risk of cancer.
While the researchers cannot estimate the precise increase in cancer risk, she said, the findings underscore a need for government to take steps to protect children.