Barbara Adler was in good health until March 1996, when she experienced the sudden onset of severe migraine headaches, loss of energy, frequent dizzy spells, and difficulty concentrating. She consulted with a neurologist and many other health care practitioners overthe ensuing months, but none was able to help relieve her symptoms or shed light on the cause of her deteriorating health.
At some point in her search for wellness, she reviewed the journal she had been keeping in which she recorded significant events in her life. She noted that, around the time of the onset of her symptoms, her husband had purchased a bug spray from one of the local nurseries. He was told that the insecticide would be appropriate for the bugs on his houseplants. Barbara remembers that the bug spray smelled noxious to her, and she put some of the sprayed plants in the garage. She looked at the label on the bottle and saw that it contained Diazinon, a potent organophosphate
matoes), on golf courses, and for mosquito and fire ant control
• continued spot and local use for termite control until December 31, 2002
• use in new home pretreatment until December 31, 2005
• unrestricted export
Inert ingredients, which can account for up to 99 percent of a pesticide, are not usually identified on the label. The Trade Secrets Act protects manufacturers from being required to fully disclose them even if the ingredients are potentially hazardous to human health. No studies of any kind are required on the inknown to have toxic effects on the nervous system. Barbara returned to the nursery to register a complaint and was told that Diazinon was not harmful.
Discussion
Although it is illegal for manufacturers to claim their pesticides are "safe," Dr. Elliott notes that in her experience local nurseries and other establishments selling pesticides frequently tell customers that organophosphates such as Sevin, Dursban, and Diazinon are harmless when applied according to instructions. In fact, many people with multiple chemical sensitivity disorder attribute the onset of their illness to pesticide exposure. While the patient in the above case became ill after an acute exposure to which she reacted immediately, the majority of cases occur when repeated, low — level exposures cause a gradual decline in health and vitality.
ert ingredients. Many inert ingredients can be more toxic than the active ingredients, yet warning labels apply only to active ingredients. In a Freedom of Information Act lawsuit, the Northwest Coalition for Alternatives to Pesticides (NCAP) obtained from the EPA a list of 1,400 of the 2,000 substances being used as inert ingredients in pesticides. These ingredients included Chicago sludge and other hazardous waste, asbestos, and some banned chemicals such as DDT.6
A recent study found that combining pesticides can make them up to 1,600 times more potent.7 A good illustration of this synergy is found in a class of pesticides called
Pesticide Facts
• A National Cancer Institute study indicated that the likelihood of a child contracting leukemia was more than six times greater in households where herbicides were used for lawn care.9
• According to a report in the American Journal of Epidemiology; more children with brain tumors and other cancers were found to have had exposure to insecticides than children without cancer.10
• According to the New York State Attorney General’s office, 95 percent of the pesticides used on residential lawns are considered probable carcinogens by the EPA.11
• 2,4-D was a component of Agent Orange and is used in about 1,500 lawn care products.12
• Pesticides have been linked to the alarming rise in the rate of breast cancer.13
• Besides causing cancer, pesticides have the potential to cause infertility, birth defects, learning disorders, neurological disorders, allergies, multiple chemical sensitivities, and other disorders of the immune system.
pyrethroids, which are mistakenly thought to be harmless because they are plant-derived. The unlabeled inert ingredient commonly mixed with the pyrethroids is PBO (pipero — nyl butoxide). Alone, each substance has limited toxicity to insect species; when they are combined, the mixture is extremely effective. PBO potentiates the pyrethroid by destroying one of the enzymes in the detoxification pathway that deactivates the pesticide in the insect. Humans exposed to this mixture suffer impaired ability of the liver to metabolize toxins in the environment.
Biocides can be absorbed through the skin,
inhaled, or swallowed. Many building products and household furnishings such as carpets, paints, and wood products are treated with biocides. Infants and small children are more likely to be harmed by biocides because their developing organs and nervous systems are more easily damaged and because they are more likely to come into direct contact with treated carpets and lawns.
Pesticides can drift a long distance from the site of application, leaving residues throughout the surrounding community. Pesticides contaminate everything and everyone they contact. Residues are found in rain, fog, snow, food, water, livestock, wildlife, newborn babies, and even in the Arctic ice pack. People and pets may track pesticide residues into the house. An EPA study in Florida found the highest household pesticide residues in carpet dust.8
Pesticides may cause both acute and chronic health effects. Acute health effects appear shortly after exposure. Chronic health effects may not be apparent until months or years later. Chronic effects generally result from long-term exposure to low levels of toxic chemicals but may also arise from short-term exposure. A tragic misconception about pesticides is that the potential for harm is primarily the result of acute or immediate poisoning. In fact, delayed effects pose the greatest problems to human health. Many pesticides are fat soluble and bioaccumulate in tissues, where they can exert prolonged effects on the immune, endocrine, and nervous systems.
When building or remodeling a healthy home, you can lower your pesticide exposure by not treating the soil under the building and by eliminating or sealing standard building products that contain biocides. Division
