Groundwater Recharge with Reclaimed Water: Birth Outcomes in Los Angeles County, 1982-1993

This book is an assessment of the effects on human health of reclaimed water. The assessment focuses on adverse outcomes among liveborn infants, including low birth weight, preterm birth, infant mortality, and birth defects, from 1982 to 1993. Outcome rates in the Montebello Forebay area, which has received some reclaimed water in its water supply since 1962, are compared with a control area that received no reclaimed water. Using a cohort study design, this epidemiologic assessment analyzes outcome data on individuals classified by a ZIP code-level percentage of reclaimed water. The results of the study do not provide evidence of an association between reclaimed water and adverse birth outcomes.