Agricultural workers, risks pesticides

Barthel E. 1981. [Cancer risk in pesticide exposed agricultural workers]. Arch Geschwulstforsch 51 579-585. (German)... 

Public and regulatory concern over the potential cancer risks posed by pesticide residues in the diet has been significant over the past two decades. While the consumption of foods containing residues of pesticides has not been correlated with the development of human cancers, pestieide exposure has been linked to some cancers in agricultural workers. In most cases, however,... 

Was there Increased risk of exposure to pesticides by the agricultural workers as a result of the CCCs ... 

AMERICAN MEDICAL ASSOCIATION, COUNCIL ON SCIENTIFIC AFFAIRS (1988), Cancer risk of pesticides in agricultural workers , JAMA, 260(7), 959-966. 

Barthel E. 1981. Increased risk of lung cancer in pesticide-exposed male agricultural workers. J Toxicol Environ Health 8 1027-1040. 

Barthel E. 1981. Increased risk of lung cancer in pesticide exposed male agricultural workers. In American Society for Pharmacology and Experimental Therapeutics Symposium on Molecular Mechanism(s) of Toxicity of Chlordecone (Kepone), Rochester, MN, August 20, 1980. J Toxicol Environ Health 8 1027-1040. 

A study in Washington State found that children living with agricultural workers and in proximity to tree fruit orchards may have more opportunity for exposure than children living in homes without such risk factors (Simcox et al., 1995). These findings were supported by an additional study which measured pesticide metabolites in children s urine (Loewenherz et al., 1997 Lu et al., 2000). 

Increased rates of hemolymphopoietic cancers among farmers have been reported in studies from several different countries (15-291. Table III gives overall results for studies concerning multiple myeloma, non-Hodgkin s lymphoma, and leukemia. If the reported excesses were attributable to pesticides, then one would expect to find considerable increased risks among those farmers and agricultural workers most heavily exposed. Yet no clear associations have emerged. It, therefore, seems unlikely that... 

A recent study by the Finnish Institute of Occupational Health found that woman agricultural workers exposed to certain pesticides during the first three months of pregnancy had double the risk of giving birth to deformed children. Some of the chemicals used in the study—dichlorvos, aldicarb, mancozeb, captan and naled— are used in the flower industry and other agricultural activities in Columbia. More than 60% of flower workers in Colombia are women. 

The last section is a discussion of the use of experimental data to arrive at risk assessment as recommended by states such as California, Canadian governmental regulatory agencies, and industry. These parties share a common goal, namely to make the workplace safe for agricultural workers who are exposed to pesticides through normal work activities. 

It is apparent from these last chapters that risk assessment for agricultural workers from dermal exposure to pesticides is an extremely complex technique that is evolving rapidly and will require considerable future resources for it to be refined to a fine science. 

Ihe two basic determinants of human health hazard for toxic chemicals, including pesticides, are exposure (or dosage) and toxicity (or effect). Information on both these determinants of hazard is necessary in arriving at a risk assessment for a particular pesticide or pesticide usage. The exposure parameter is particularly important for agricultural workers because of their relatively greater contact with pesticides than is true for the general population. 

This book provides an up-to-the-minute picture of the current status of research on measurement and risk assessment of dermal pesticide exposure for agricultural workers. The chapters also provide an insight into some newer areas (applications of mathematical models, use of fluorescent tracer materials, and extrapolation from a computer data base of generic pesticide exposure data) that will undoubtedly be receiving increased attention in the future. 

Until recent years, research devoted to the pesticide exposure of agricultural workers was essentially nonexistent. It has been established that a major source of exposure to toxic chemicals is the use of such chemicals in agricultural production. In general, applicators and mixer/ loaders have the hipest exposure risk. Mary studies have shown the exposure to applicators skin to be well over 90% of their total exposure. The only significant type of barrier available to applicators to reduce dermal contact and hence exposure is protective clothing. 

T IS GENERALLY RECOGNIZED that a potential health risk exists for agricultural workers (applicators, mixer-loaders, harvesters, and Held workers) who are exposed to pesticides. Thus, since 1980, various symposia, including the one upon which this book is based, have been held to examine various parameters involved in the risk assessment of these workers due to dermal exposure from pesticides. 

Although an abundance of literature has been published on the assessment of agricultural worker exposure, none integrates the three disciplines necessary for a complete risk assessment for field workers exposed to pesticides. These disciplines are dermal absorption, field exposure studies, and toxicology-risk assessment. This volume deals with these three disciplines and shows how they are integrated into a complete risk assessment for agricultural workers from dermal exposure to pesticides. 

Spittler, T. D. Bourke, J. B. in "Risk Determination for Agricultural Pesticide Workers from Dermal Exposure" Honeycutt, R. C., Ed. ACS SYMPOSIUM SERIES, American Chemical Society Washington, D.C., in preparation. 

Cohort studies of agricultural chemical production workers found decreased mortality from all cancers among workers who had probable exposure to atrazine. Findings of an increased risk of non-Hodgkin lymphoma among farmers could not be attributed to atrazine exposure when adjustment was made for other pesticide exposure. ... 

The field of pesticide exposure assessment is complex and challenging. Exposures occur through multiple routes and are highly variable. Risks associated with pesticide handling differ substantially for the different activities and from those experienced by agricultural re-entry workers. Different assessment and control strategies are needed for each population. Eamilies of pesticide handlers can be... 

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