children-and-pesticides-booklet

4ROUTES AND SOURCES OF EXPOSUREFrom the womb through infancy to adolescence, children are exposed to pesticides in many ways – foetalexposure in the womb and in infancy and childhood, exposure to contaminated air, food, water andgeneral environment in homes, schools, play areas, and work places.In many developing countries, where poverty forces children to work on farms and plantations, theyoften are engaged in using pesticides or, living near farms, are exposed to pesticide spray drifts fromfarms. Such pesticide sprays and run-offs often contaminate their drinking water sources, too.Exposure in the wombMothers exposed to pesticides, earlier in life or during pregnancy, can pass these chemicals,through the placenta in the womb, to the foetus. Studies in several countries – for example,the US, China, Japan, India, Kazakhstan and Thailand -- have found pesticides in umbilicalcord blood, the placenta and the amniotic fluid that protects and nourishes the foetus. Manystudies have found a wide range of pesticides in the meconium (first faeces) of the new-born.The food that pregnant mothers eat is another source of exposure. One study showed pesticides in thecord blood of all the children tested whose mothers had eaten soya bean, corn and potato geneticallymodified to tolerate those pesticides.

6Exposure at home, schools and public placesExposure is generally high where pesticides are used in homes, home gardens and lawns, schools,public places like playgrounds and parks, and public fogging for mosquito control. It is thehighest where children live in crowded poor-quality urban housing ‘prone to insect-infestation’.Pesticides used indoors tend to persist longer. Children inhale pesticide vapours and pesticideladendust, and also touch and play around with things which carry pesticide residues (skin is animportant route of pesticide absorption).In the US, where indoor pesticide use is a major source of children’s exposure, a national survey foundthat of the 40 pesticides most commonly used in schools, 28 are probable or possible carcinogens(cancer-causing), 26 cause reproductive problems, 26damage the nervous system and 13 are linked to birthdefects. In Australia, where insecticides are widely usedin homes and farms, pre-school children have been foundto have “widespread chronic exposure” to insecticides.Children inhale pesticide vapours andpesticide-laden dust, and also touchand play around with things whichcarry pesticide residues.Accidental ingestion of pesticides and pesticidecontamination of food served in schools, resulting in poisoning and deaths of children, are also commonin many developing countries.

8HEALTH EFFECTS ON CHILDRENHormonal balance is crucial to an expectantmother’s well-being and the healthy growth of thefoetus. The mother’s hormones orchestrate andcontrol the growth of the foetus and the variousorgans and systems. Many pesticides can mimichormones and disrupt this growth process, leadingto a range of birth defects, life-long impairmentsand diseases, including some diseases that maymanifest in adulthood. These pesticides are calledendocrine disruptors.Birth defectsSeveral birth defects have been associated withparental exposure (home, occupational andcommunity exposure) to pesticides. These includeanencephaly (absence of a major part of the brainand skull), missing or malformed limbs, uro-genitalabnormalities such as hypospadia (abnormallyplaced urinary opening on the penis), cryptorchidism(undecended testicles), cleft palate and harelip, congenital heart diseases, eye deformities,gastroschisis (protrusion of the baby’s intestinesthrough a hole in the abdominal wall), spina bifida(incomplete development of the brain and the spinalcord) and problems with the reproductive system.Still births, premature births, and low weight andsmaller body size of the new-born, are some of theother related problems.Birth defects have been found to increase withseasonal and occupational exposure of parents topesticides and other chemicals before conception.Mother’s exposure at critical periods of pregnancyis another key factor.Strong evidence of such birth defects comesfrom the Kasargod area in the southern stateof Kerala in India, where communities hadlong periods of exposure to endosulfan (anendocrine-disrupting organochlorine pesticide)sprays (See Page 14 , “Endosulfan and birth defects:the Kasargod case”).A strong seasonal association between birth defectsand atrazine (an endocrine-disrupting herbicide)in water sources has also been found in the US(See Page 15 “Seasonal exposure to atrazine andbirth defects”).Much of the available evidence points to theleading role of organochlorine pesticides (such asendosulfan and DDT) in causing birth defects, butother pesticides, such as organophosphates likechlorpyrifos and diazinon, also have a role.

10Child cancersA large number of recent studies link pesticide exposure to the steadily rising incidence of childcancers around the world. Childhood leukaemia, brain tumour, neuroblastoma (tumour in nervetissue), non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma, Ewing’s sarcoma (bone tissue tumour) and Wilm’s tumour(kidney) are most commonly associated with pesticide exposure. While neuroblastoma is mostcommon among infants, leukaemia and brain tumour are most common among children.Many studies find parental exposure(occupational or home use) beforeconception, foetal exposure at criticalperiods, and direct exposure inchildhood carry significant risks of achild developing cancer. Home use ofpesticides during pregnancy increasesthe risk. Children who live on or nearfarms with a high level of pesticide usealso face much higher risks. A largescaleinternational study found a linkbetween maternal farm exposure andbrain tumours among children.Early exposure to pesticides thatdisrupt the hormonal system can leadto some adult cancers related to thereproductive system, particularly breast,prostate and testicular cancers. Manypesticides, including organochlorines,organophosphates and pyrethroids areassociated with cancers.Reproductive problemsBesides the birth defects mentioned earlier, foetal exposure to endocrine-disrupting pesticides can causea range of problems related to the reproductive system which show up later in life.For girls, these include early puberty, menstrual irregularities, uterine fibroids, endometriosis(a painful condition when the endometrium or the uterus-lining tissues grow outside the uterus)and infertility. Men suffer disruption of reproductive development and reproductive functionswith lower sperm count, poor sperm quality and poor fertility. In Kasargod, boys showed delayedsexual development indicated by poor development of pubic hair, testes and penis, and lowertestosterone production; many pesticides can have ‘feminising’ (oestrogenic) or ‘anti-masculinising’(anti-androgenic) effects on boys.

11Obesity, diabetes andmetabolic disordersObesity and diabetes areemerging as major problemsin many parts of the world.Worldwide, obesity has doubledsince 1980, and obesity islinked to diabetes (Type 2),hypertension and cardiovasculardiseases, or metabolic disorders.Though lifestyle factors such asdiet and physical activity havelong been thought to causeobesity, emerging evidence nowalso links pesticide exposure,particularly in the womb and inearly childhood, to obesity andrelated disorders.Pesticides can cause weight gainby interfering with the actionof hormones that control bodyweight, glucose metabolism andinsulin levels. Organochlorine,organophosphate and carbamatepesticides are found to beinvolved here. Recent evidenceshows that rapid weight gainin the first few months of lifeand a higher body mass indexBesides triggering asthmaattacks as respiratoryirritants, pesticides cancause childhood asthmaand respiratory and otherallergies by disruptingthe immune system. Adisrupted immune systemcan have far-reachinghealth consequencesthroughout life.(a measure of underweight or overweight based on weight relativeto height) at 1-2 years of age may indicate later obesity; pesticideexposure in the womb has been found to be strongly associated withboth these indicators.Immune system, asthma and allergiesBesides triggering asthma attacks as respiratory irritants,pesticides can cause childhood asthma and respiratoryand other allergies by disrupting the immune system.A disrupted immune system can have far-reaching healthconsequences throughout life. It will lower the body’s ability to resistinfections, which can lead to greater sickness and afflictions, includingauto-immune diseases.Various studies have found that prenatal and early childhoodexposure to pesticides increased the risk of asthma. Organochlorine,organophosphate, carbamate and pyrethroid pesticides were allassociated with the increased risks.

12Epigenetic changesSome pesticides, especially endocrine disruptors, can trigger ‘epigenetic changes’ or heritable changes byaltering the level of gene activity (gene expression).Such changes and the associated health effectscan be passed on to succeeding generations.Some well-studied examples are breast cancerlinked to the endocrine-disrupting fungicidevinclozolin, and reproductive effects such as onsperm, ovaries (associated with methoxychlor, anendocrine disruptor) and the placenta (vinclozolin).Such epigenetic changes are now drawing greaterattention.Multiple causes and actionOften, in real life, unlike in laboratory studies,children are exposed to not just one pesticide butseveral pesticides at a time.They are also exposedto industrial chemicals many of which are knownto have similar effects as pesticides, particularlyin disrupting the endocrine system. In many cases,genetic factors, too, have a role, with chemicalstriggering changes and adverse health effects inchildren genetically susceptible to those changes.All these factors magnify health risks.Pesticide regulatory standards and practices do notconsider the impacts of these multiple causes andtheir additive and synergistic action. The standardscontinue to be based on the health impacts asingle pesticide is likely to cause, mainly in adults.“Acceptable levels of exposure” are set on theassumption that such exposures may not causemuch harm or may cause some health problemswhich can be reversed. However, in children, suchacceptable and even much lower exposures cancause devastating, irreversible and heritabledamage, putting generations in jeopardy.Can we accept this enormous cost that individuals,communities and whole societies have to payfor some perceived and questionable benefits ofpesticide use, particularly its large-scale usein agriculture which exposes millions of childrenaround the world to serious health problems, andwhich affects their intellectual and physical growthpotential?Can we accept this enormous cost thatindividuals, communities and wholesocieties have to pay for some perceivedand questionable benefits of pesticideuse?

14Child labour in agriculture and pesticidesAround 215 million, or overseven per cent of all thechildren, are engaged in ‘childlabour’ worldwide. Nearly70 per cent or 150 million ofthese child labourers work inagriculture. In some countries,children below 10 make up20 per cent of the rural childlabour force. These includechildren working in familyfarms, commercial farms andplantations, and as ‘bonded’and forced labour. The childrenbegin work as young as fiveyears of age.In Africa and South andCentral Asia, children workin cotton fields in conditionsthat expose them to highlyhazardous pesticides duringor immediately after spraying.They also spray pesticides --on top of the arduous labour,overwork and low wages,violence, sexual harassmentand rape, and lack of recreationthat they have to endure.In many African countries,children, including young girls,working in cocoa and coffeeplantations are made to applypesticides without protectiveclothing.In Egypt, about one millionchildren, 7 - 12 years of age,are employed to help with pestmanagement in cotton crops.In Mali, as much as 50 percent of the workforce in somecotton areas are children; inKazakhstan, it is 60 per cent.In India, cottonseed productionhas the highest percentage ofchild labour in any sector. In theyear 2009-10, nearly 170,000children below the age of14, and 211,600 aged 14-18years worked in cottonseedproduction; about 70 per centwere girls. They are exposedfor long periods to highlyhazardous pesticides. Similarpractices are seen elsewherein Asia –in vegetable farms inthe Philippines, in tea estatesin Sri Lanka, and in rose farmsin Bangladesh.In Latin America, childrenroutinely work in coffee, sugarcane, cardamom and coffeeplantations, often exposingthem to highly hazardouspesticides. An estimated18,516 children aged 5-14years were poisoned bypesticides in Nicaragua overthe years 1995 to 2006, thoughit was illegal to allow childrenbelow 14 years to work.In Mexico too, children workon tobacco plantations andare frequently exposed topesticides.(Poisoning our Future: Children andPesticides, Meriel Watts, PesticideAction Network Asia and the Pacific)Endosulfan and birth defects: the Kasargod casePerhaps the most strikingevidence that pesticides causebirth defects comes from thevillages of Kasargod (in thestate of Kerala in India) where20 years of aerial sprayingof endosulfan on cashewplantations exposed successivegenerations, including manypregnant women, to thispesticide.A number of children born tothese women had birth defects.These included malformationof the male reproductivetract such as cryptorchidism,hydrocele, hernia; deformitiesof hands and feet, includingstag-horn limbs and otherskeletal abnormalities;congenital heart disease;congenital mental retardationand cerebral palsy; andcongenital eye problems suchas cataracts and retinopathy.

15Congenital problems weremore prevalent in girls.Besides birth defects, therewere other problems related toneurodevelopment – delayedmental and psychomotordevelopment, learningdisabilities, low IQ, andepilepsy.Girls also developedreproductive problems such asearly puberty, endometriosis,menstrual disorders andaltered hormone levels.(Poisoning our Future: Children andPesticides, Meriel Watts, PesticideAction Network Asia and the Pacific)Seasonal exposure to atrazine and birth defectsSeasonal exposure topesticides during pregnancyhas been linked to increasedrisk of birth defects.A multi-layer national reviewof the US Geological Surveywater data and the US Centrefor Disease Control birth defectrecords found a strong seasonalassociation between birthdefects and presence of theherbicide atrazine in surfacewater. Infants conceivedbetween April and July, whenelevated concentrations ofthe herbicide are found insurface water, had significantlyhigher birth defect risks.(A Generation in Jeopardy: HowPesticides are Undermining ourChildren’s Health and Intelligence,Pesticide Action Network NorthAmerica) .Pesticides and mental/neurological functioningA comparative study in thelate 1990s of two groups ofchildren from the Yaqui regionin Mexico, one living in avalley where pesticides wereused heavily in farming andthe other from a pesticidefreefarming area in thefoothills, clearly showed thedifferences in their functionalabilities. The two groups hadcommon genetic, cultural andsocial backgrounds. In thevalley, pesticides, includingmultiple organochlorine andorganophosphate mixturesand also pyrethroids, wereused about 90 times a year,and household pesticidesthroughout the year. Thefoothills children had nopesticide exposure, except forthe annual DDT applicationby the government formalaria control. Compared tohighland children, the valleychildren showed a markeddecrease in functional abilities(in mental/neurologicalfunctions) as measured byphysical stamina, ability tocatch a ball, fine eye-handcoordination, ability to drawa person (the valley childrencould draw only randomundifferentiated lines whilethe highland children dreweasily recognisable humanfigures), recall after 50 minutes,

16and group play in whichthe valley children wereless creative with minimalgroup interaction. The valleychildren were also moreaggressive, hitting siblingsand getting more upset byparents’ corrective comments.The researchers concludedthat the functional differencesin the valley childrenindicated brain dysfunctionwhich affected learningabilities and social behaviour.A similar study conducted inthe mid 2000s in India, withchildren from cotton-growingareas with heavy pesticideuse and children from areaswhere pesticide use was muchlower, also showed that thepesticide-exposed childrenhad lower abilities in stamina,cognition, memory, motorskills and concentration.(Poisoning our Future: Children andPesticides, Meriel Watts, PesticideAction Network Asia and the Pacific)(A Generation in Jeopardy: HowPesticides are Undermining ourChildren’s Health and Intelligence,Pesticide Action Network NorthAmerica) .

17Appendix 1List of Highly Hazardous Pesticides that should be eliminated1. Chlorpyrifos2. Monocrotophos3. Malathion4. Methamidophos5. DDT6. Permethrin7. Diazinon8. Paraquat9. Propoxur10. Atrazine11. Dichlorvos12. Cypermethrin13. Deltamethrin14. Mancozeb15. Methyl parathion16. Carbaryl17. Chlorothalonil18. Parathion19. Lambda-cyhalothrin20. Maneb

About the CampaignResearch confirms that children today have higher rates of childhood cancers, autism, birth defects,asthma and a wide range of childhood diseases and disorders and that pesticides are implicated ascausative factors. Although research on pesticides use and their impact on the health of childrenin the Asia Pacific region is scarce, anecdotal evidence exists. PAN therefore chose to focus itscampaign on pesticides that are specifically harmful to children’s health because of their specialvulnerability and effects on mental and physical development.The Children and Pesticides Campaign is an extension of the Pesticide Action Network’s (PAN)International Call to Action on Highly Hazardous Pesticides (HHPs). The process of defining HHPsbegan in November 2006 with FAO endorsing the Strategic Approach to International ChemicalsManagement (SAICM) and continued through to October 2007 when the FAO/WHO Panel ofExperts on Pesticide Management discussed options for defining HHPs. Criteria to identify HHPswere outlined by the FAO/WHO Expert Panel; however PAN found important shortcomings in thatlist of indicators. In particular, pesticides with endocrine disrupting properties, ecotoxicologicalproperties or inhalative toxicity had not been taken into account by the Expert Panel.Because of these shortcomings, PAN International decided to independently develop a definition of“Highly Hazardous Pesticides” (HHPs) with a more comprehensive set of indicators and to achieve alist of HHPs based on the PAN list of indicators. PAN’s definition of HHPs is therefore based on theindicators. (For more details please go to: www.panap.net)The information in this booklet is a summary of two publications:i. Poisoning our Future: Children and Pesticides by PAN Asia Pacific (PAN AP)http://www.panap.net/sites/default/files/Poisoning-Our-Future-Children-and-Pesticides.pdfii. A Generation in Jeopardy: How pesticides are undermining our children’s health & intelligence byPAN North America (PANNA)http://www.panna.org/sites/default/files/KidsHealthReportOct2012.pdfPAN AP is grateful to PANNA for the use of information from A Generation in Jeopardy: Howpesticides are undermining our children’s health & intelligence.This booklet has been produced with financial assistance from the Swedish InternationalDevelopment Cooperation Agency (Sida) through the Swedish Chemicals Agency, KemI. The ideasand opinions expressed herein area solely by PAN AP.

Pesticide Action Network Asia and the Pacific (PAN AP) is one of the five regional centres ofPesticide Action Network (PAN), a global network dedicated primarily towards the eliminationof harm caused to humans and the environment by pesticides and towards promotingbiodiversity-based ecological agriculture.PAN AP’s vision is of a society that is truly democratic and culturally diverse, based on theprinciples of food sovereignty, gender justice and environmental sustainability. PAN AP hasdeveloped strong partnerships with peasants, agricultural workers, indigenous peoples,fisherfolks, rural women movements and other small food producers in the Asia Pacificregion. Guided by the strong leadership of these grassroots groups, PAN AP has become astrong advocacy network with a firm Asian perspective.Our mission lies in strengthening people’s movements to advance and assert food sovereignty,promote biodiversity-based ecological agriculture and the empowerment of rural women;protect people and the environment from highly hazardous pesticides; defend the riceheritage of Asia and resist the threats of corporate agriculture and neo-liberal globalisation.Currently, PAN AP comprises 108 network partner organisations in the Asia-Pacific regionand links with other civil society and grassroots organisations, regionally and globally.Pesticide Action Network Asia and the Pacific, P.O. Box 1170, Penang, 10850 Malaysia.Tel : +604-657 0271 / +604-656 0381 | Fax : +604-6583960Email : panap@panap.net | Website : www.panap.net