Health Concerns Related to Modern Agriculture

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Health Concerns Related to Modern Agriculture

• ES 110 Fall 2004
• Wed 27 Oct

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Health Concerns from Agriculture

• DirectWorker Exposure
• Occupational risk
• Pesticide application
• IndirectEcological / Regional Health Impacts
• Pesticides in drinking water (and ecological
  effects)
• Fertilizer (nitrates / nitrites in groundwater)
• Antibiotic resistance
• Airborne soil / pesticide transport
• IndirectConsumer Exposure
• Pesticide residues on and in foods
• Genetically modified crops
• Bovine growth hormones

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Top 10 Most Dangerous Jobs

• Occupation Fatalities /
  100,000
• Timber cutters 117.8
• Fishers 71.1
• Pilots and navigators 69.8
• Structural metal workers 58.2
• Drivers-sales workers 37.9
• Roofers 37
• Electrical power installers 32.5
• Farm occupations 28
• Construction laborers 27.7
• Truck drivers 25
• Bureau of Labor Statistics, 2002. Survey of
  occupations with minimum 30 fatalities and 45,000
  workers in 2002.

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Use and Overuse of Fertilizers

• NITRATES and NITRITES
• Excess use of fertilizer leaches NO3- (nitrates)
  into groundwater NB not observed from manure
  composting
• Nitrates convert to nitrites (NO2-) in body
• Acute effects illness / death due to
  interference with O2-carrying capacity of blood
• Chronic effects bladder problems, kidney
  failure, starchy deposits, spleen hemorrhaging,
  cancer of stomach, bladder, colon cancer

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Health Effects of Pesticides

• Acute impacts
• Reported US poisonings 20,000/yr (1 total?)
• Reported US fatalities 50/yr
• 25,000 brands pesticides registered in US alone
• Chronic impacts
• Neurological effects
• Cancer, especially childhood cancer
• Reproductive and developmental toxicity
• Endocrine disruption

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Human Impacts from Chronic Exposure
US reported cases typically only include acute
poisonings
95 of pesticide exposure cases occur in
developing countries
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Herbicides in Surface Water
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VOCs in Drinking Water
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McFarland CAchildhood cancers

• Mid-1980s only 1/5 agricultural workers in CA
  Central Valley health insurance
• Mid-1990s only 2/5
• Densest table-grape growing region in US
• Birth defects and childhood cancer rates 12
  times national levels
• Mid-1990s connected elevated cases with
  pesticide exposure

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Pesticides in Produce

• Highest Lowest
• Apples Asparagus
• Bell peppers Avocados
• Celery Bananas
• Cherries Broccoli
• Imported grapes Cauliflower
• Nectarines Corn (sweet corn)
• Peaches Kiwi
• Peas Mangos
• Potatoes Onions
• Red Raspberries Papayas
• Spinach Pineapple
• Strawberries Peas (sweet)
• Released 10/21/2003 by EWG