| Research & Birth Defects |
Agent Orange & Birth Defects Blog |
| Betty Mekdeci Executive Director BDRC is a nonprofit organization founded in 1982 |
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Despite insurmountable odds, Mrs. Mekdeci has presented the findings to government agencies and congressional committees as well as in the national media, and continues to fight on behalf of the children of Vietnam and Gulf War veterans. |
| All types of birth defects and developmental disabilities as well as the health, genetic and exposure histories of both parents are recorded. BDRC has dedicated many years collecting research data to investigate whether there are increases in certain birth defects in the children of Vietnam Veterans as a result of the parent(s) exosure to Agent Orange during the Vietnam war. | National Birth Defect Registry |
| Agent Orange and Birth Defects, The Legacy Continues by Betty Mekdeci |
Mrs. Mekdeci reported in an article she wrote which was 'peer reviewed' and published in the Journal of San Francisco Medical Society, that since 1991 BDRC has recorded thousands of cases of Children of Vietnam Veterans with birth defects and developmental disabilities. In the article, Mrs. Mekdeci also reported that an impressive body of scientific evidence points to the increases in birth defects and developmental problems in the Children of Vietnam Veterans and others exposed to dioxin-like chemicals. |
| In Vietnam there were many different mixtures of herbicides in addition to Agent Orange. In the Gulf War environment, there were 32 categories of developmental toxicants. |
"There are a lot of exposures in any warfare environment that are reproductive toxins, so I think that is something we have to take into account with any returning army", Mekdeci said. |
| In 2004, Bryon Harris reported that there is controversy regarding the exposure of soldier's to toxins during the Gulf War & birth defects in their children |
Studies Link Birth Defects, Gulf War Pentagon says there is not proven correlation by Brian Harris |
| National Birth Defect Reigstry | The registry has also collected data on birth defects & disabilities in the children of Gulf War veterans. Data from the National Birth Defect Registry, however, found an increase in a rare craniofacial birth defect in the children of Gulf War veterans. |
| The Department of Defense funded a study by Dr. Maria Araneta, an epidemiologist at the University of California at San Diego. This study found a tripling of this rare birth defect in Gulf War veterans children that were born in military hospitals. |
Gulf War & Birth Defects |
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