Pesticide residues Poisonings

Despite the use of 2.5 million tons of pesticide worldwide, approximately 35% of potential crop production is lost to pests. An additional 20% is lost to pests that attack the food post-harvest. Thus, nearly one-half of all potential world food supply is lost to pests despite human efforts to prevent this loss. Pesticides, in addition to saving about 10% of world food supply, cause serious environmental and public health problems. These problems include human pesticide poisonings fish and bird kills destruction of beneficial natural enemies pesticide resistance contamination of food and water with pesticide residues and inadvertent destruction of some crops. 

If the spill may expose the public to pesticides or pesticide residues, contact public health officials. If anyone is poisoned by contacting the spill or if you suspect that an exposure may lead to poisoning, call the hospital emergency room and provide them with the brand name, active ingredients, and any other labeling information about human health hazards, signs and symptoms of poisoning, and antidotes. 

There is also a big gap between real and perceived risk. In Europe and the United States the public is mainly concerned about residues and food safety. With proper precautions, however, this is not a real problem, as residues in food are low and do not contribute significantly to our total intake of chemicals. Actually, there are no cases confirmed in which residues of modem pesticides in food were the cause of poisoning of humans. As there is a large overproduction of agricultural commodities in western countries, people worry about minor risks, like pesticide residues, as they do not have to worry about supply of food in principle. The picture is strikingly different in other parts of the world, where food production does not match the growth of the population and where malnutrition and famine are well known. 

Growth of the agrochemical industry in China has been accompanied by problems related to quality control, unsafe application of chemicals, and pesticide residues. According to a report from the Chinese National Statistics Bureau, 48,377 pesticide poisoning cases, including 3,204 fatalities, were reported in 27 provinces in 1995. Another government estimate placed total farm worker fatalities due to pesticides at 7,000-10,000 annually. 

Munk ZM, Nantel A. Acute lindane poisoning with development of muscle necrosis. Can Med Assoc J 1977 117 1050-1052. Nash RG, Kearney PC, Maitlen JC, Sell CR, Fertig SN. Agricultural applicators exposure to 2, 4-Dichlorophenoxyacetic acid. In Pesticide residues and exposure. Plimmer JR, editor. ACS symposium series 182, 1982, Chap 10 119-132. 

In the first nine months of 1991, there were 101 cases of pesticide residues on vegetables poisoning 2086 people reported in the Guangdong province. 

The following cases give results of residue analyses which have found unsafe levels of pesticide chemicals in a significant proportion of food samples. There is an evident risk of consumer exposure and cases exist of acute pesticide poisoning caused by pesticide residues on food. There is also the problem that consumers can still be exposed to toxic pesticides banned in their own country through the import of residues on food products from another country where the pesticides are still used. The effects of pesticide residues are a concern for both developed and developing countries. 

The use of aldicarb has a double impact on people, firstly via poisonings, animal kills or water poisoning and then secondly the residue scandal which can cause economic dislocation in the banana industry past experience shows that embargoes, product recalls and declines in consumption caused by pesticide residue problems often have drastic effects on communities. 

Hundreds of people die from pesticide poisoning each year. A survey of pesticide residues in food samples collected in 12 states found residues in 85% of samples with 43% above the recommended doses. 

Four people died and six others were hospitalised with poisoning symptoms from suspected pesticide residues on salad and leaves used in a family meal. 

Every year between 1986 and 1991, there have been fatal pesticide poisonings linked to the consumption of pesticide residues in food. 

In 1985, 1000 US and Canadian consumers were poisoned by aldicarb residues in watermelon, the largest known incidence of pesticide food poisoning in North America. 

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