Grand Rounds: The Impacts of Maternal Geophagy on Children's Neurodevelopment in Zambia

Join us for Grand Rounds with Dr. Sarah Rothenberg! For this month's Grand Rounds, Sarah Rothenberg, DEnv, will discuss her local and international research on maternal geophagy, its effects on children's neurodevelopment, and the presence of heavy metals in clay. About the Speaker Dr. Sarah Rothenberg is an associate professor at Oregon State University. Her research focuses on maternal exposure to environmental pollutants and the effects of those exposures on children's health and development. Although much of her work is conducted internationally, the findings have important implications for populations in the United States. From 2013 to 2024, Dr. Rothenberg established and led a prospective birth cohort study in rural China to investigate maternal methylmercury exposure through rice consumption and its impact on child neurodevelopment. This research was among the first to examine rice, rather than fish, as the primary dietary source of methylmercury exposure. The study found that the neurodevelopmental effects of prenatal methylmercury exposure were more readily detectable at lower exposure levels in a rice-eating population, where the beneficial nutrients found in fish and their potential confounding effects were less pronounced. In 2023, these findings informed Dr. Rothenberg's testimony before the California Legislature in support of AB 899, which requires testing for four metals, including mercury, in foods marketed to infants and young children, such as rice-based baby cereals. The bill was subsequently passed and signed into law. Building on her work in China, Dr. Rothenberg expanded her research on maternal and child environmental health to Zambia. In 2025, she and her Zambian collaborators received funding to investigate the effects of maternal geophagy, the consumption of soil or clay, on children's neurodevelopment. While geophagy has been documented among mothers in the United States, it is considerably more common among pregnant women in sub-Saharan Africa, where reported prevalence ranges from 16% to 87%. In this Grand Rounds presentation, Dr. Rothenberg will discuss this ongoing research, including analyses of heavy metals found in clay samples purchased in Zambia and in Brooklyn, New York, and the potential implications for maternal and child health. This lecture will be on the CUNY SPH campus, but those who are unable to attend in person will be able to tune in to a livestream of the lecture via Zoom. All registrants should RSVP. Virtual attendees will receive the livestream link after registering.