How does TCE affect my health?

TCE in the blood stream can cross the placenta and enter the developing baby. A pregnant woman’s exposure to TCE during the first two to eight weeks of pregnancy, when the baby’s heart is developing, can increase the chance of having a baby born with a birth defect of the heart. Most babies exposed to TCE during pregnancy will be born with normal hearts, and having a baby with a birth defect of the heart does not mean there was exposure to TCE.