What You Need to Know About Pesticides and Human Health
The Truth about Pesticides :
We are aware of pesticides used in agriculture extensively and on a on a daily basis to control insect pests, rodents, nematodes, and other microorganisms. All the pesticides used are highly toxic to human and animal health. These pesticides, if not used with proper care, may cause many negative impacts on our health, like irritation, nausea, dizziness, cancer, birth defects, reproductive harm, neurological damage, and endocrine disruptors.
What Are the Signs of Pesticide Poisoning? How Do Pesticides Affect Our Health?
While using pesticides during pest control operations in urban areas or even agricultural fields, if you get exposed to any of the pesticides, the different symptoms and signs may appear. These signs include nausea, dizziness, vomiting, headaches, and such others. The pesticide may cause different types of effects on the human body. These effects may be acute, and sometimes they can be chronic and even lead to the death of the individual.
What You Need to Know About Pesticides, Kids and Pets?
If the pesticides are not used properly, they can cause reproductive disorders, such as sexual dysfunction and birth defects in infants and children. The pesticide exposure to pregnant women may cause premature health. On the other hand, animals can also get damaged by the toxic effects of the pesticides; if they are drinking water from polluted areas, they may die. The acute effects of pesticides are acute health effects.
Chronic health effects, toxicity, irritation, respiratory issues, dizziness, skin rashes, blisters, and chronic damages include cancer, reproductive harm, endocrine disruption, neurological damage, and organ damages like nerve damage, liver damage, and kidney damage. The reproductive effects of pesticides include premature birth, sterility, and infertility. These are the pesticides that have potential health hazards for the human body: pyrethroids, organophosphates, carbamates, 1, 3-dichloropropene, chloropicrin, metam sodium permethrin, and soil fumigants.
Easy Ways to Reduce Pesticide Exposure:
To reduce negative impacts on the health, the applicators must follow the label directions and apply only the recommended dose supervised by the experts or pesticide technicians. Apply the pesticides in a safe manner that doesn’t carry health hazards or damage to other materials. Don’t inhale gaseous chemical fumigants such as methyl bromide and phosphine.
Take preventive measures to avoid any accident that may cause damage to our health. If a pesticide comes into contact with the skin or eyes, wash them with water. Contact the physician as soon as possible and provide first aid to the affected person.
Understanding Pesticide Labels: What Do They Mean?
Active and inert material: The pesticide label contains information about the active and inert ingredients or material present in it. Active ingredient is a substance that acts on the pest, and inert ingredient is a substance used to shape pesticide granule, powder, or even liquid.
Danger: Danger sign indicates warning that pesticide is highly toxic and it may cause harm or death.
Warning: The warning sign indicates that the pesticide is moderately toxic for humans, animals, and the environment.
Caution: This sign indicates that the specific is slightly toxic.
Precautionary Statements: The precautionary statement explains that the pesticide is a hazard for humans, animals, and the environment
First Aid: In case a person got exposed to pesticides, it explains how to help and provides guidelines for physicians.
Application rates: It provides information on the dose of the pesticides to be used on specific areas and commodities.
Storage: Helps in storing the pesticides in a generally cool and dry environment.
EPA Registration Number: Indication that pesticide is registered with an environmental protection agency.
(REI): It provides guidelines for re-entry intervals after pesticides.
Simple Steps to Wash Pesticides off Fruits and Veggies
When you buy fruits and vegetables from the markets, these are probably sprayed with different pesticides during cultural practices. So it is wise to wash the theme off 2 to 3 times. Some experts also suggest washing them off with warm water for better removal of any pesticide residue present in the fruits. Washing the theme will remove any remains of pesticides and also dust and other pollutants present on the theme.
Are Organic Foods Safer from Pesticides?
Organic food products are considered to be free from harmful pesticides; there is no chemically synthesized pesticide used on theme. Instead of chemical pesticides, they use plant extracts and naturally present repellents. But it is wise to wash organic fruits and vegetables, as sometimes the fruits and vegetables that are exposed to chemicals are also sold as organic, and you don’t know whether they are following organic cultural practices or not. The food grown in controlled environments and hydroponics is also sold as organic, even though it is totally grown on artificial supplements. So it is wise to confirm if the food is completely organic or partially organic.
