CDC Body Burden Study Finds Widespread Pesticide Exposure
July 22, 2005
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)
yesterday released its Third National Report on Human Exposure
to Environmental Chemicals, finding that more than 90% of U.S.
residents carry a mixture of pesticides in their bodies. Many of
these chemicals are linked to health effects such as cancer,
birth defects and neurological problems. Children, who are
particularly vulnerable to the effects of pesticide exposure,
had higher levels of some pesticides in their bodies than
adults.
CDC sampled the blood and urine of thousands of
subjects across the country for 148 chemicals, 43 of them
pesticides. This sample represents just over 3% of the 1,284
pesticide active ingredients currently registered in the U.S.
that are formulated into tens of thousands of pesticide products
for agricultural and home use.
Pyrethroids were included for the first time in this
study, and CDC found one pyrethroid metabolite to be
particularly widespread in the population, occurring in more
than 75% of the subjects tested. Pyrethroids are insecticides
widely used in agriculture, in home and garden pest products,
and for lice control. They are a synthetic version of
pyrethrins, a naturally occurring insecticide extracted from
chrysanthemums. Unlike pyrethrins, which break down in the
environment within hours, synthetic pyrethroids can last from
days to months, creating a much greater risk of exposure.
The health effects of pyrethroids are well documented.
Exposure can produce neurotoxic effects, vomiting, diarrhea and
a tingling sensation on the skin (paresthesias). Pyrethroids are
also suspected endocrine disruptors and possible carcinogens,
and as a group are the second most common cause of pesticide
poisoning reported to U.S. poison control centers.
Some pesticides were found in the CDC study at higher
levels in children than adults. For example, the organophosphate
pesticide chlorpyrifos was found at higher concentrations in
children, indicating exposures more than four times the level
EPA considers "safe." Home use of chlorpyrifos was banned in
2001 because of concern over health effects in children, but an
estimated 10 million pounds continues to be used in agricultural
fields every year. In the 2001/2002 period covered by this
report chlorpyrifos was found in more than 75% of the
population.
The organochlorine pesticides aldrin, dieldrin and
endrin, banned in the U.S. for decades, were included in CDC's
study for the first time and were detected in very low or
un-measurable amounts. CDC also sampled for breakdown products
of the organochlorine pesticide lindane, found in nearly half of
the subjects tested. Unfortunately CDC did not test for other
organochlorines that continue to be used in the U.S., such as
endosulfan and dicofol. Organochlorines are known to persist in
the environment, build up in people's bodies, and are passed
from mother to child in the womb and through breastfeeding.
A body burden study released last week by the
Environmental Working Group (EWG) reported findings similar to
the CDC study, focusing specifically on chemical exposures
infants received before they were born. EWG tested fetal cord
blood of 10 healthy infants born at various locations around the
U.S. in 2004, revealing exposures to a total of 287 chemicals.
Among the most pervasive pesticides found in newborns were
hexachlorobenzene, dieldrin and DDT (and its contaminants and
byproducts).
PANNA issued a set of recommendations based on findings
from the CDC study. These include:
- Corporations like Bayer CropScience that continue to
distribute organochlorine pesticide products should withdraw
them immediately from the U.S. market.
- Policymakers should use CDC's biomonitoring data to
help develop policies that better protect public health, and
particularly children.
- CDC should make more detailed data (such as location
and timing of sampling and occupational information) publicly
available to help policymakers set priorities and evaluate
impacts of state-level policies already in place, such as
California's ban of lindane for pharmaceutical use.
- Consumers should choose organic food and
pesticide-free household and hygiene products to protect their
families and support markets for healthy alternatives.
CDC's biomonitoring program is the largest in the U.S.
and provides invaluable information on chemical exposures
nationwide. The agency announced plans to expand the list of
studied chemicals to more than 300 in the next study, to be
released in 2007. This year's report provides important insights
into the widespread nature of pesticide exposure in the U.S. and
highlights the need to shift to less toxic approaches to pest
management.
See CDC Releases 3rd National Report on the PANNA
website, http://www.panna.org
Sources: CDC National Report on
Human Exposure to Environmental Chemicals,http://www.cdc.gov/exposurereport/; Body
Burden, The Pollution in Newborns, Environmental Working Group,
http://www.ewg.org/reports/bodyburden2/release_20050721.php;
Reigart, R.J., and Roberts, R.J. 1999. Recognition of
Management of Pesticide Poisonings 5th Edition. Washington
DC: U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.
Contact: PANNA
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