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Agent Orange & Its Neurological Symptoms

Agent Orange is the nickname given to a defoliant and herbicide used by the U.S. government during the Vietnam War. Named for the bright orange containers in which it was shipped, Agent Orange was sprayed indiscriminately over millions of acres in Vietnam for deforestation to destroy the local food supply and jungle hiding places. Studies later revealed that Agent Orange is toxic to humans, and it has had many neurological side effects for the Vietnamese and Americans who came in contact with it.

  1. Neurological Damage to Fetuses

    • Dioxin, a main ingredient in Agent Orange, causes severe neurological harm to a developing fetus when the mother is exposed to the chemical. Babies whose mothers were affected by Agent Orange while pregnant might be born with multiple birth defects, including damaged nervous systems, mental retardation and other mental disabilities. Dioxin is a known carcinogen and might contribute to the development of many types of cancer in children who were exposed to Agent Orange in the womb.

    Peripheral Neuropathy

    • The U.S. Department of Veteran Affairs officially recognizes a link between exposure to Agent Orange and the development of transient peripheral neuropathy. This is a disease of the nervous system in which the neurological transmission of motor information to limbs and other body parts is damaged. The result is a weakness in the extremities and other parts of the body, often degenerative and disabling. Because the peripheral nervous system also controls the heart muscle, the condition can prove fatal if it affects an individual's heart rate.

    Link to Parkinson's Disease

    • In 2009, the Institute of Medicine concluded a study about Vietnam veterans who had been exposed to Agent Orange that suggested, inconclusively, that exposure to the toxin might increase an individual's risk for developing Parkinson's Disease. Parkinson's is a neurological disorder that impairs a person's mobility, speech and other motor functions. The study suggested that Agent Orange might damage nerve cells in such a way that it triggers the disease more easily in some patients, but it did not prove a direct causal link between the two.

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