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Pesticides
We know PESTICIDES kill tiny pests…so what
can they do to tiny people?
- What human-made, toxic substances can be found
lurking in our food, water, air, and carpets, as well as in our
body tissues?
- Why are so many parents worldwide choosing
to feed their kids only organically grown foods?
Two words: chemical pesticides!
Chemical Pesticides Threaten Children’s Health!
Overwhelmingly, scientists agree that many synthetic pesticides
can harm the health of humans, especially children. Enacted in 1996,
the Food Quality Protection Act (FQPA) was the first law to acknowledge
that infants and children need extra protection against pesticide
exposures. “A toxin has much more devastating effects on a
developing nervous system. The child’s brain, because it is
still growing, is much more vulnerable than an adult’s brain,”
says Herbert Needleman, M.D., a professor of pediatrics at the University
of Pittsburgh Medical School. “And because children play on
floors and on the ground, put their hands in their mouths, and eat
more fruits and vegetables per pound of body weight, they receive
a greater overall exposure to pesticides.”
Many common insecticides, such as Dursban™, contain potent
neurotoxicants—i.e., they function by disrupting the organism’s
nervous system, disabling the transmission of signals to and from
the brain. Many studies have revealed clear links between the neurotoxic
nature of these pesticides and harms to the healthy development
of a child’s brain. Such harms can take the form of learning,
behavioral, and developmental disabilities.
Where are pesticides used?
- On land: Agricultural crop fields, golf courses,
sports fields, playgrounds, roadsides, lawns, etc.
- In the home: professional exterminations,
carpet pest treatments, inside schools and community buildings,
flea sprays and “dips” for dogs and cats, CCA-treated
lumber, etc.
- On bodies: head lice treatments, bug and tick
repellants, etc.
- On food: sprayed on food during cultivation,
as well as after harvesting to deter fungal growth prior to shipping.
How can we be exposed?
Hundreds of millions of people worldwide are significantly
exposed to pesticides every day through farm and garden use, in
residues in air, water, food, and within their homes.
A World Resources Institute study estimates that only 0.1% of
pesticides applied to crops reach the target pest. The rest “drifts,”
going wherever the wind carries it, contaminating air and water
supplies, and poisoning wildlife and accumulating in the bodies
of larger organisms.
In this way, fetuses and infants are exposed, via amniotic
fluid and breast milk, to the pesticides that enter the mother’s
body. To their tiny bodies, the concentrations are far
greater than what the mother encounters. These early exposures at
vulnerable stages of development can result in life-long neurological
and physical impairments.
Our homes may be sources of chronic exposure to pesticides.
According to Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) sponsored studies,
pesticide levels were significantly higher inside residences
than outside, in both high and low pesticide use areas.
Pesticides used indoors, as well as those that enter on people’s
clothing, shoes, and in the air, often persist for years because
they are not subject to outdoor breakdown factors like rain, sunlight,
temperature extremes, and microbial action. Upholstered furniture,
carpets, and especially the foam pads underneath carpets, work as
long-term reservoirs that store pesticides and reintroduce them
into the air in dust that can be inhaled. House dust is especially
of concern for young children, who frequently put hands and toys
that may be covered in pesticide-laden dust into their mouths.
What YOU can do to reduce your child’s exposure
to pesticides:
- Buy organic produce whenever possible, prioritizing
those foods most likely to contain chemical residues, such as
peaches, apples, pears, winter squash, green beans, grapes,
strawberries, raspberries, spinach, and potatoes.
- Always wash (and peel, where possible) fruits and vegetables.
Pesticide residues tend to accumulate in the outermost skins.
The pesticide DDT, banned in the U.S. in 1973, has been found
in the skins of root vegetables grown more than 20 years later.
- Wipe shoes on doormats and leave them at the door.
Pesticides and other toxins can be tracked in from outdoors onto
the floors where children play.
- Use damp dust rags. Feather dusters simply
stir up the dust and disperse it into the air, where it can be
inhaled.
- Vacuum regularly with an HEPA filter vacuum.
Old vacuums can blow contaminated dust from the carpet out into
the air. Dust particles can be inhaled and ingested after settling
on food, hands and furniture.
- Avoid all use of lawn, garden, and household pesticides.
Explore the many effective, non-toxic methods of pest control.
- Prevent household pests naturally by removing sources
of food, water, and shelter. Fix leaky plumbing; don’t
let water accumulate anywhere, such as in sinks or beneath plants;
wipe up food residues on countertops; seal pet food containers;
keep garbage sealed; rinse recyclable containers; remove woodpiles
from around or inside your home; repair door and window screens;
outdoors, remove diseased plants and fallen fruit that may attract
pests to your garden.
- Talk to neighbors, schools, businesses, and city officials
about reducing pesticide use (Note: There are safer alternatives
for every use of chemical pesticides. Cities like Vancouver, B.C.
maintain beautiful grounds without the use of chemicals!)
- Urge the makers of your favorite food products to purchase
ingredients from organic farmers. Make your consumer
voice count in speaking out against the misuse of toxic chemicals.
- Check out the book Common Sense Pest Control: Least-toxic
solutions for your home, garden, pets, and community
(By Olkowski, Daar, and Olkowski,Taunton Press, 1991).
Published by the Institute
for Children’s Environmental Health
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