Agricultural workers using pesticides

The facts of pesticides negative effect on human health, especially in rural areas, show that there is no coincidence of, and no underestimating, some factors - the range of effects is too large. Pesticide impact has affected the health not only of agricultural workers using pesticides, but also the health of those who did not. 

H.W. Drenth, I.E.G. Ensberg, D.V. Roberts, and A. Wilson, Neuromuscular function in agricultural workers using pesticides. Arch. Environ. Health 25 395, 1972. 

Occupational disease, caused by skin contact with toxic substances, represents a major health problem In the United States (1). Dermal exposure of agricultural workers to pesticide agents, of course. Is a particularly pertinent example of this problem. Prediction of the detrimental toxic effects of hazardous chemical exposure Is difficult, however, because of the complexity of the percutaneous absorption process in man and a lack of any consistently Identifiable relatlonshlp(s) between transport rate and chemical properties. In addition, the very diverse approaches, which have been used to measure skin penetration, further complicate the situation since the extrapolation of results to man In his workplace may Involve questionable, non-valldated assumptions. Our specific aim Is to predict accurately the toxicokinetics of occupationally-encountered molecules (e.g., pesticides) absorbed across human skin In vivo. We present... 

The pesticide omite pricipally acts as an irritant. Contact dermatitis was reported in 40 of 47 agricultural workers using it. 

In occupational settings, exposure to endosulfan is mainly via the dermal and inhalation routes. Although workers involved in the manufacture and formulation of pesticide products containing endosulfan are potentially exposed to high concentrations of the compound, actual exposure is probably limited by the use of engineering controls and personal protection equipment. The highest documented dermal and inhalation exposures have been reported for agricultural workers involved in the spray... 

Based on the patch method to assess worker or re-entry exposure, researchers have developed a database, which may be used to estimate exposure. Each patch from an individual in a study can be entered into the database separately, the residue data from patches from various body areas can be summed to yield a whole-body exposure number, and the data may be sorted as to worker tasks, equipment used, protective clothing worn, formulation types and other parameters. This is the basis for the currently used Pesticide Handlers Data Base (PHED), which was developed through a joint effort in the 1980s of CropLife America [formerly known as American Crop Protection Association (ACPA) and National Agricultural Chemicals Association (NACA)], the Environmental Protection Agency (ERA) and Health Canada. " The PHED is discussed in detail in another article in this book. 

Methods to determine exposure of pesticides to agricultural workers have developed over the last 30 years at a reasonably slow pace. Some of the first methods to determine agricultural worker exposure to pesticides were developed by Armstrong, Wolfe, and Durham1 as well as Poppendorf.2 Using these methods for research has resulted in the development of several axioms related to agricultural worker exposure to pesticides ... 

The patch method (although not as popular today) and the use of whole-body dosimeters are both reasonable methods for determining dermal deposition on the skin of agricultural workers during application of pesticides or when they re-enter treated fields. 

Generally speaking, the equipment that workers use and the type of agricultural work performed while handling pesticides or pesticide-treated commodities have a major impact on the level of exposure a worker receives. Neat work habits generally lead to lower exposure for agricultural workers who handle pesticides. The current Pesticide Handlers Exposure Database (PHED), which is used to predict exposure to mixers/loaders/applicators, is based on this concept. 

Dr. Day was a founding member of the Pesticide Handlers Exposure Database (PHED) Task Force, and was instrumental in the development of the database, which is now widely used in the field of pesticide worker exposure. In 1994, he was a key player in the formation of the Agricultural Worker Re-entry Task Force (ARTF) and the Outdoor Residential Exposure Task Force (ORETF), and he served as chairman of the ARTF Technical Committee from its inception in 1994 until his retirement from DowElanco. Dr. Day also served as his company s representative on the Residue Technical Committee of the International Life Sciences Institute (ILSI) from 1989 to 1996. He continues to serve as a consultant to the agrochemical industry. 

Pesticides are chemicals used to eliminate unwanted organisms. Common targets for pesticides include insects, weeds (herbicides), fungi, and rodents. Poisoning from pesticides often affects professional exterminators, agricultural workers, and consumers (Table 7.7). More than half of the poisonings due to agricultural pesticides affect children. 

Pesticide Action Network Asia-Pacific (PAN-AP)4 is the regional arm of PAN-International, and is co-ordinated from Kuala Lumpur. It has autonomous national branches such as those in the the Philippines and Indonesia. PAN-AP is dedicated to helping women, agricultural workers, farmers and peasants protect their health and environment, as well as ensure their safety from hazards of pesticide use. It believes that pesticides are unnecessary and harmful thus their use must be reduced if not altogether eliminated. For this reason, PAN-AP closely monitors pesticide production, trade and use. 

Ensure that all agricultural workers involved in cotton production have, adequate access to protective equipment, and receive training in the. responsible use. of hazardous cotton pesticides. 

The use and sale of pesticides are strictly regulated by both federal and state laws to protect public health and the environment. No one can use pesticides without encountering these laws either directly or indirectly, and all professional workers should be familiar with them. In this chapter, we will summarize the major provisions of the current laws. There are three important federal pesticide laws in the United States (Anonymous, 1997 Ware and Whitacre, 2004). Pesticides are regulated by three federal agencies, namely, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), and the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA). 

The compound l,2-dibromo-3-chloropropane (DBCP) was used as a pesticide in the 1970s. Recently, agricultural workers have claimed that exposure to DBCP made them sterile. Write the structural formula for this compound. 

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