Children from families exposed to the BFP were 26% more likely to have normal height for age than those from non-exposed families; this difference also applied to weight for age.

More than half the stem cells exposed to the virus turned into fat cells and accumulated fats, while only a small percentage of the non-exposed stem cells did the same, said researcher Dr.

Compared to the non-exposed group, those in the potentially exposed group had a statistically significantly increased risk for cancer, especially breast and colorectal cancer, the researchers found.