Farm Worker's Kids Show High Pesticide Exposures
(HealthDay News, 7/20/06)

Thomas Arcury and fellow researchers at Wake Forest University School of Medicine in Winston-Salem, N.C., tested urine samples from 60 children of farm workers in six counties for organophosphate insecticides. The team found levels greater than what is the norm in other parts of the US, but were uncertain as to whether the levels were high enough to harm the subjects. The investigators note that, at high levels, such pesticides can cause coma and death, and that even chronic low-level exposure has been shown to increase the risk of birth defects, cancer, and sterility. The scientists recommend that precautionary measures be taken to minimize pesticide exposure.

(American Journal of Industrial Medicine)