Arsenic and fluoride exposure in drinking water: children's IQ and growth in Shanyin county, Shanxi province, China.

Background: Recently, in a cross-sectional study of 201 children in Araihazar, Bangladesh, exposure to arsenic (As) in drinking water has been shown to lower the scores on tests that measure children's intellectual function before and after adjustment for sociodemographic features.

Objectives: We investigated the effects of As and fluoride exposure on children's intelligence and growth.

Methods: We report the results of a study of 720 children between 8 and 12 years of age in rural villages in Shanyin county, Shanxi province, China.