OneOne The Pesticide Problem Preface vii
If we don’t change direction soon, we’ll end up where we’re going.
—Professor Irwin CoreyProfessor Irwin Corey was considered a guru of comedy by those who remember him
when he was a regular on the Steve Allen television shows of the 1950s and 1960s.
However, there is nothing humorous about the subject of this book—pesticides—and
his message has become increasingly relevant.
There is growing public concern regarding pesticide exposure, and for good reason.
Studies have shown that all people, especially children, pregnant women, farmers, farm-
workers, and the elderly, may experience negative health effects from exposure to pesti-
cides. Pesticide exposure can cause acute poisoning, cancer, neurological damage, birth
defects, and reproductive and developmental harm.^1 Much evidence has revealed that
many commonly used pesticides can suppress the normal response of the human
immune system, making the body more vulnerable to invading viruses, bacteria, para-
sites, and tumors, increasing the incidence of disease and some cancers.^2 Some evidence
indicates that pesticides may reduce male sperm counts.^3 Unfortunately, pesticides are
widely used in our environment to control pests, but we the people rarely hear about it.
Fortunately, there are ways to reduce pesticide use and exposure.
Pesticides, by design, are toxic to certain life forms. Currently in the United States
there are more than 17,000 registered pesticide products and more than 800 active
ingredients. Acute pesticide-related illness and injury continues to be a problem.
According to poison control center data, there are approximately 18,000 uninten-
tional pesticide exposures each year. Approximately 1,400 of these are occupational.^4
According to Bureau of Labor Statistics data, annually there are 500 to 900 lost
work-time illnesses caused by pesticide exposure. Finally, there are approximately fif-
teen to twenty death certificates per year that contain codes for unintentional pesti-
cide poisoning. All of these estimates are thought to be underestimates of the true
incidence of unintentional acute pesticide-related illness and injury.^5