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A new 2018 systematic review paper in PLOS Medicine has called for the banning of ALL organophosphate pesticides.
Paper authors: Irva Hertz-Picciotto, Jennifer B. Sass, Stephanie Engel, Deborah H. Bennett, Asa Bradman, Brenda Eskenazi, Bruce Lanphear, Robin Whyatt.
Organophosphates have been linked to ME/CFS, Gulf War illness, Parkinson's, autoimmune conditions such as lupus and rheumatoid arthritis, and neurodevelopmental disorders like ADHD and autism in children.
Organophosphate agricultural pesticides include chlorpyrifos, parathion, malathion, diazinon, dichlorvos, terbufos and others.
This new paper says that:
This new paper is detailed in some newspaper articles:
Bombshell New Study Calls For Ban On Pesticide Family Tied To Brain Damage In Kids in the Huffington Post says:
Ban entire pesticide class to protect children's health, experts say in the Guardian says:
Human Exposure to Organophosphates
Pesticides can enter the body through the mouth, skin, eyes or lungs. Sources of pesticide exposure include garden pesticide sprays used by you or your neighbor, which can be tracked into the house on shoes. Agricultural exposure may occur in rural areas through crop spraying. Pesticide exposure can also occur through treating wood with preservatives, and treating livestock with anti-parastitic preparations, such as sheep dip.
Organophosphate pesticides are detoxified from the body by an enzyme called paraoxonase; individual differences in the paraoxonase gene can increase a person's susceptibility to organophosphates. Ref: 1 2 So people with certain alleles (mutations) in their paraoxonase gene can be much more susceptible to organophosphate pesticide damage.
Organophosphate Link to ME/CFS
Exposure to significant amounts of organophosphate pesticides has been linked to triggering ME/CFS. Ref: 1
In one study, sheep farmers using organophosphate-based "sheep dip" in Scotland were found to have rates of ME/CFS four times higher than the national average, implicating organophosphates as a causal factor in ME/CFS. Refs: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7
ME/CFS researcher Professor Peter Behan has long studied the organophosphate link to ME/CFS, and talks about it in this 1997 newspaper article.
Another class of pesticides called organochlorines, which include DDT and dieldrin, have also been linked to ME/CFS. Ref: 1 2 3 However most organochlorines have been banned for several decades now, with some exceptions such as dicofol which is banned in Europe but still used on cotton and fruit crops in the US, and DDT which is still used for malaria control in Africa and parts of Asia.
Organophosphate Link to Autoimmune Disease
A 2011 study of nearly 77,000 women found that those who personally mixed or applied insecticides for 20 years had double the rate of the autoimmune conditions rheumatoid arthritis and systemic lupus erythematosus.
Organophosphate Link to Aerotoxic Syndrome on Aircraft
Organophosphates are added to aircraft engine oils, and fumes containing organophosphates can enter cabin air, making cabin crew sick with neurological symptoms.
This article in the Guardian covers aerotoxic syndrome: 'There are hundreds of sick crew': is toxic air on planes making frequent flyers ill?
Organophosphate Link to Autism
EDIT: this 2019 paper links exposure to organophosphate and pyrethroid pesticides, as well as glyphosate, during pregnancy and as an infant to the later development of autism.
Paper authors: Irva Hertz-Picciotto, Jennifer B. Sass, Stephanie Engel, Deborah H. Bennett, Asa Bradman, Brenda Eskenazi, Bruce Lanphear, Robin Whyatt.
Organophosphates have been linked to ME/CFS, Gulf War illness, Parkinson's, autoimmune conditions such as lupus and rheumatoid arthritis, and neurodevelopmental disorders like ADHD and autism in children.
Organophosphate agricultural pesticides include chlorpyrifos, parathion, malathion, diazinon, dichlorvos, terbufos and others.
This new paper says that:
- Widespread use of organophosphate (OP) pesticides to control insects has resulted in ubiquitous human exposures.
- Compelling evidence indicates that prenatal exposure at low levels is putting children at risk for cognitive and behavioral deficits and for neurodevelopmental disorders.
- High exposures to OP pesticides are responsible for poisonings and deaths, particularly in developing countries.
This new paper is detailed in some newspaper articles:
Bombshell New Study Calls For Ban On Pesticide Family Tied To Brain Damage In Kids in the Huffington Post says:
The eight researchers who authored the paper found there is no safe level of exposure to any organophosphate pesticide for pregnant women, whose babies suffer disorders ranging from impaired mental and motor skills and memory loss to autism and attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder.
The Trump administration ignited a new debate over chlorpyrifos, one of the pesticides in the family, nearly two years ago when the Environmental Protection Agency abandoned plans to ban the chemical’s use on food.
Ban entire pesticide class to protect children's health, experts say in the Guardian says:
200,000 people still die each year from pesticide poisonings, according to UN estimates, about 99% of them in the developing world. A further 110,000 suicides using pesticides take place each year.
Terbufos has been linked to lung cancer, leukaemia and non-Hodgkin lymphoma
"We found no evidence of a safe level of organophosphate pesticide exposure for children. Well before birth, organophosphate pesticides are disrupting the brain in its earliest stages, putting them on track for difficulties in learning, memory and attention, effects which may not appear until they reach school-age. Government officials around the world need to listen to science, not chemical lobbyists." said Bruce Lanphear, one of the paper's authors.
Human Exposure to Organophosphates
Pesticides can enter the body through the mouth, skin, eyes or lungs. Sources of pesticide exposure include garden pesticide sprays used by you or your neighbor, which can be tracked into the house on shoes. Agricultural exposure may occur in rural areas through crop spraying. Pesticide exposure can also occur through treating wood with preservatives, and treating livestock with anti-parastitic preparations, such as sheep dip.
Organophosphate pesticides are detoxified from the body by an enzyme called paraoxonase; individual differences in the paraoxonase gene can increase a person's susceptibility to organophosphates. Ref: 1 2 So people with certain alleles (mutations) in their paraoxonase gene can be much more susceptible to organophosphate pesticide damage.
Organophosphate Link to ME/CFS
Exposure to significant amounts of organophosphate pesticides has been linked to triggering ME/CFS. Ref: 1
In one study, sheep farmers using organophosphate-based "sheep dip" in Scotland were found to have rates of ME/CFS four times higher than the national average, implicating organophosphates as a causal factor in ME/CFS. Refs: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7
ME/CFS researcher Professor Peter Behan has long studied the organophosphate link to ME/CFS, and talks about it in this 1997 newspaper article.
Another class of pesticides called organochlorines, which include DDT and dieldrin, have also been linked to ME/CFS. Ref: 1 2 3 However most organochlorines have been banned for several decades now, with some exceptions such as dicofol which is banned in Europe but still used on cotton and fruit crops in the US, and DDT which is still used for malaria control in Africa and parts of Asia.
Organophosphate Link to Autoimmune Disease
A 2011 study of nearly 77,000 women found that those who personally mixed or applied insecticides for 20 years had double the rate of the autoimmune conditions rheumatoid arthritis and systemic lupus erythematosus.
Organophosphate Link to Aerotoxic Syndrome on Aircraft
Organophosphates are added to aircraft engine oils, and fumes containing organophosphates can enter cabin air, making cabin crew sick with neurological symptoms.
This article in the Guardian covers aerotoxic syndrome: 'There are hundreds of sick crew': is toxic air on planes making frequent flyers ill?
Organophosphate Link to Autism
EDIT: this 2019 paper links exposure to organophosphate and pyrethroid pesticides, as well as glyphosate, during pregnancy and as an infant to the later development of autism.
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