Get the drift?

Treating dogs for fleas or spraying to control pests inside your home can increase children's exposure to pesticides, a new study shows.

- Nicky Pellegrino

Pesticide exposure has been linked with a range of health problems including cancer - in particular non-Hodgkin lymphoma - as well as thyroid dysfunction and neurodevelopmental problems in children and teens.

We know pesticides are widely used here in agriculture, as well as homes and workplaces. But how much is being sprayed and, more importantly, are these chemicals affecting our health? At the moment, we don't have enough information to give clear answers.

Now, a new study has shown that Kiwi kids are being exposed to 2.2-7.3 times more of an organophosphate called chlorpyrifos than children in countries such as Spain and Thailand. Chlorpyrifos is associated with neurodevelopmental problems and has been banned in some places, including the US and Australia. This was the first research at this scale done in this country, says Jeroen Douwes, a professor of public health at Massey University. Five hundred children aged 5-14 and from a variety of backgrounds were involved. They shared information on diet, lifestyle and location and their urine was analyzed for 20 pesticide biomarkers.

Urine samples do have limitations. They will reflect only what someone has been exposed to in the previous 24-48 hours. “Also, many of the pesticides currently in use have a half-life that is considerably shorter than some of the more toxic and persistent chemicals we used to have," says Douwes. “They are more easily excreted, so don't hang around in your body for that long."

Jeroen Douwes

Although the study provides only a snapshot of pesticide levels at a particular point in time, it has yielded some interesting results.