Question

What is blue baby syndrome? How is it caused?

Answer 1

Blue baby syndrome is a disease which occurs in infants due to soil pollution. Excessive use of fertilizers, pesticides and other nitrogen compounds increases the level of nitrates in soil or water. From soil, it enters the vegetation.
When nitrate containing vegetable or fruit is eaten by human beings, it enters the gut. Nitrate also enters through drinking water. In human gut, nitrates get converted into toxic nitrites, which combine with hemoglobin of blood to form methaemoglobin due to which oxygen transport is reduced. Pregnant women transfer the toxic nitrites to their foetus, hence the newly born baby appears bluish and may die.