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Public health experts found that it was sufficiently established that prenatal exposure to widely used insecticides, known as organophosphates, exposes children to a risk of developing disorders. neurological development.
In a scientific journal and call for action published in PLOS Medicine ] the researchers call for immediate government intervention to eliminate all organophosphates.
"There is convincing evidence that exposure of pregnant women to very low levels of organophosphate pesticides is badociated with low IQ and learning, memory or attention difficulties." Lead author Irva Hertz-Picciotto, Professor of Public Health Sciences, Director of the UC Davis Center for Environmental Health Sciences and Researcher at the UC Davis MIND Institute.
"Although only one organophosphate – chlorpyrifos – has been under the national spotlight, our review involves the full clbad of these compounds," added Hertz-Picciotto.
Ori Developed as neurotoxic gases and weapons of war, organophosphates are now used to control insects on farms, golf courses, shopping malls and schools. They kill pests by blocking nerve signaling.
People can come in contact with these chemicals through the food they eat, from the water they drink and from the air that they breathe. As a result, according to Hertz-Picciotto, organophosphorus pesticides are detected in the vast majority of US residents.
High Risks Even in Low Exposure
Although existing organophosphorus limits have reduced exposures, the review authors said that this was not enough. Based on more than 30 epidemiological studies and numerous experimental studies on animals and cell cultures, they believe that the evidence is clear: Exposure to organophosphates before birth, even at levels currently considered safe, is badociated with poorer cognitive, behavioral, and social development. 19659003] "It should not be surprising that studies confirm that these chemicals impair brain development because they were originally designed to negatively affect the central nervous system," said Hertz- Picciotto.
Despite Increasingly Harmful Evidence and Recommendations from Scientific Advisers In the United States and scientists at the US Environmental Protection Agency, many organophosphates remain in use. This may be due in part to the fact that regular, low-level exposures do not usually cause clinically visible symptoms in the short term, which incorrectly suggests that these exposures are unimportant, according to Hertz-Picciotto.
"Acute poisoning is tragic However, the studies we have reviewed suggest that the effects of low-intensity chronic exposures on brain function persist throughout childhood and up to the end of life. adolescence and can last a lifetime, which is also tragic, "explained Hertz-Picciotto.
Recommendations to Protect Children
In addition to scientific review, the authors made recommendations to significantly reduce exposures to organophosphates, including:
- Suppression of organophosphates in agricultural and non-agricultural products and uses
- Proactive monitoring sources of drinking water containing concentrations of organophosphates
- Establishment of a notification system for the use of pesticides and pesticides diseases
Until a ban can
- Strengthen medical and nursing training on organophosphates to improve treatment and education of patients to avoid exposures
- Training agricultural workers in the proper handling and application of organophosphate pesticides
- Less toxic alternatives introduction to sustainable pest management
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