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Pesticide Threat As Children Study

Posted on: Wednesday, 27 July 2005, 06:00 CDT

A study highlighting the dangers of pesticides in schools today prompted demands for urgent action to protect children.

Scientists found that the rate of illnesses linked to pesticides and similar chemicals rose significantly between 1998 and 2002 in schools in the US.

Both children and school employees were affected. The vast majority were cases of 'low severity' which accounted for 89 per cent of the 2,593 patients studied.

But researchers also identified three cases of 'high severity', and 275 cases (11 per cent) of 'moderate severity'.

Of 406 cases where detailed source information was available, 281 (69 per cent) were associated with pesticides used in schools, and 125 (31 per cent) with chemicals drifting into schools from nearby farms.

Exposure to pesticides can cause rashes, sore throats, burning eyes, blisters, headaches and nausea as well as potentially more serious long-term effects.

The scientists were led by Dr Walter Alarcon, from the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health and the US Centres for Disease Control and Prevention in Cincinnati.

Reporting the research in the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA), they wrote: 'These findings indicate that pesticide exposure at schools continue to produce acute illnesses among school employees and students in the United States, albeit mainly of low severity and with relatively low incidence rates.'

The scientists recommended measures to improve the use of pesticides in schools, reduce pesticide drift, and set up pesticide spray 'buffer zones' around school buildings.

The UK Pesticides Campaign called for immediate action to protect the public, and the replacement of chemicals with natural methods of pest control.

Georgina Downs, who heads the campaign, said: 'Children are particularly vulnerable to the effects of pesticide exposure because their bodies cannot efficiently detoxify and eliminate chemicals, their organs are still growing and developing.'

She pointed out that the US study only looked at acute illnesses. The school children and staff would also be at risk of developing chronic long-term conditions.

Ms Downs cited the case of a young woman who, as a child, had attended a West Country primary school surrounded by sprayed fields.

She recalled how, on at least two occasions, pesticide fell 'like fine rain' during an outdoor PE class, forcing the children inside.

The woman fell ill at the age of nine with migraines, severe hayfever and a loss of ability to concentrate. At the age of 23 she was told she had ME, or Chronic Fatigue Syndrome.

She suspected that illnesses suffered by a number of former employees at the school were also linked to pesticide exposure.

The Royal Commission on Environmental Pollution is due to publish a report on 'bystander' exposure to pesticides in September

Source: Birmingham Post; Birmingham (UK)

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