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 Printable version |
Delayed effects of pesticides on human health |
Environnement, Risques & Santé. Volume 4, Number 3, 187-94, Mai-Juin 2005, Synthèse
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 Résumé
Article gratuit
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Author(s) : Luc Multigner |
Summary : The intrinsic properties of pesticides make unexpected (hence unprotected) contact potentially dangerous for humans. Their numerous occupational and domestic uses raise many questions about their deleterious health effects. The health consequences of acute poisoning are quite well known, but the long-term consequences of chronic exposure are not. Neither in vitro toxicological approaches nor in vivo animal experiments are always suitable for predicting delayed adverse effects in human populations. The multiple times and range of chemicals to which populations are exposed often make it difficult to establish a causal link between exposure to a given product and its possible health effect. Nonetheless, despite the methodological limitations of epidemiological approaches, consistent data show that some pesticides or chemical families of pesticides have long-term deleterious effects and suggest that this is also the case for some others. There remain numerous uncertainties, however, which can be lifted only by rigorous studies that use specific and sensitive measurements of exposure and of health effects (including at early stages). Reproductive impairment, neurological conditions and cancers are currently the health effects most frequently related to chronic pesticide exposure. This review discusses some of the evidence and especially the many uncertainties about the delayed effects of pesticides on human health. |
Keywords : endocrine system, environmental exposure, pesticides, neoplasms, nervous system diseases, occupational exposure, prenatal exposure delayed effects |
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