A new study has shown that the aerial spraying of pesticides used to kill mosquitoes has caused an increase in autism amongst children in America. According to a study presented at the Pediatric Academic Societies, the use of pesticides to combat mosquito borne illnesses such as the Zika virus, has actually caused birth defects amongst the population. Scientists observed a 25 percent increase in autism and developmental disorders in children who lived in areas where aerial spraying for mosquitoes has been used since 2003. Naturalnews.com reports: Researchers “identified a swampy region in central New York where health officials use airplanes to spray pyrethroid pesticides each summer. The pesticides target mosquitos [sic] that carry the eastern equine encephalitis virus, which can cause swelling of the brain and spinal cord,” reports the American Academy of Pediatrics. Pyrethroids, synthetic chemicals used to kill flea and tics, may be linked to autism “They found that children living in ZIP codes in which aerial pesticide spraying has taken place each summer since 2003 were approximately 25 percent more likely to have an autism diagnosis or documented developmental delay compared to those in ZIP codes with other methods of pesticide distribution, such as manually spreading granules [...]