Mothballs may cause brain damage in babies: Experts

By Dr. Ananya Mandal, MDFeb 7 2011

Pediatricians have called for a ban on the sale of mothballs containing the chemical naphthalene citing evidence that these can lead to severe blood problems and even brain damage for significant numbers of Australian babies.

They say that nearly 5 per cent of Australians of Asian, African, Middle Eastern or Mediterranean descent have an inherited enzyme G6PD deficiency. These babies are at a higher risk of blood-cell breakdown if placed too close to fabrics stored with naphthalene mothballs. This may lead to severe jaundice and the yellow pigment linked to jaundice, called bilirubin, can build up in the brain. When the brain gets involved, the condition is called kernicterus. Kernicterus can lead to neurological problems and sometimes lasting brain damage.

Australians of predominantly Anglo-Saxon or indigenous background are less commonly affected, but naphthalene can also cause red cell breakdown in those without the G6PD deficiency write the four Sydney paediatricians in a letter to the Medical Journal of Australia published yesterday. They add that at least three babies suffered from the brain complications in the past three years. One of them died.

William Tarnow-Mordi, director of the Westmead International Network for Neonatal Education and Research at the University of Sydney said the red cell breakdown can happen within hours of being wrapped in clothing stored with mothballs containing naphthalene and added, “The lifetime costs of caring for a baby with kernicterus are many millions of dollars.”

The EU has banned the supply of naphthalene products in 2008 and Professor Tarnow-Mordi said they were trying to convince Australian Pesticides and Veterinary Medicines Authority to take similar action in Australia. The group has submitted a report to the Authority after more than 100 reports were received by NSW and Victorian poison information centers annually on children affected by naphthalene-based moth repellents. He said, “Health authorities in Australia already inform parents about the dangers of mothballs with naphthalene. Without further measures, more babies could sustain brain damage or die…A total ban on mothballs with naphthalene may now be the safest course.” Safer natural alternatives include camphor, lavender and sandalwood.

A spokeswoman for the Australian Pesticides and Veterinary Medicines Authority said it was aware of the submission by the pediatricians and was seeking advice from the Department of Health and Ageing. The statement from the Authority said, “The US and Canada recently conducted … reviews of naphthalene mothballs and flakes… These reviews, in 2008 and 2009, confirmed their safety subject to changes to packaging, application rates and label changes.”