As parents, we are constantly striving to provide the right environment for our children. As a mother living in a metro, this writer is of the view that our kids are falling sick more often compared to the previous generation of children. Doctors are of the opinion that since our children are growing up in heavily polluted cities, they are more prone to asthma and other infections.
But there is another factor that young parents need to worry about — early exposure of children to pesticides.
A recent study published in PLOS Journal of Medicine establishes that prenatal exposure to organophosphates puts children at risk of reduced IQs, memory, attention deficits, and autism. Bruce Lanphear, one of the co-authors and a scientist at Simon Fraser University, said: “We found no evidence of a safe level of organophosphate pesticide exposure for children. Well before birth, organophosphate pesticides are disrupting the brain in its earliest stages, putting them on track for difficulties in learning, memory and attention, effects which may not appear until they reach school-age. Government officials around the world need to listen to science, not chemical lobbyists.”
According to Dr Whyatt of Columbia’s Center for Children Environment Health in US, “The problem is that when you have an exposure as ubiquitous as this then you get a distributional shifts in IQ, with fewer people in the brilliant range and more in the lower ranges of IQ.”
Organophosphates (OP) are a group of chemicals that were initially developed as human nerve agents during the 1930s and 1940s to be used by the Nazis during war. These were later adapted as insecticides.
OPs are ubiquitous — a group of pesticides which is rampantly used in agriculture, gardens, pest control in homes and offices. Once OPs are sprayed on food crops, they find their way into the food chain. OPs have been detected in ghee, butter, honey and soft drinks.
OPs have also been known to leech into water bodies close to agricultural fields. This varied exposure from different sources leads to bio accumulation in our bodies.
Indian context
In 2018, Scientists at the National Institute of Nutrition Hyderabad studied urine samples of children for the presence of OPs. They found that urine samples of Hyderabad children contained 10 to 40 times more OPs as compared to children in the US and Europe. What this means is that our children will be more prone to the risks of organophosphates exposure. Children are also more vulnerable because their bodies’ natural detoxification systems are immature and hence they are slower in eliminating pesticides from their bodies, compared to adults. The government has done very little here. Close to 40 kinds of OPs are allowed in India. The Verma committee had suggested restricting/withdrawing some of these OPs. However, not much progress has taken place since the committee submitted its report in 2015. Several thousand tonnes of pesticides, including OPs, are sprayed annually.
Quite a few of these OPs like monocrotophos, malathion and chlorpyrifos have been classified as highly to moderately hazardous by the WHO. Many of these are banned or their use severely restricted in several countries, including the US and those in the EU.
Lack of awareness
Several studies have found that OPs are indiscriminately being used in India even on fruits and vegetables for which they have not been approved. The government has not just allowed these chemicals in the country, but have not taken any steps to inform the public.
For example, when this writer was pregnant, she moved into a new apartment. The landlord organised a pest control agency to treat the house. Pest control in India is highly disorganised and least regulated; most times, the agencies are not even aware of the constituents in the concoction. Several such mothers would take informed decisions if armed with the necessary information. This is besides millions of mothers who work on farms and are continually exposed to these pesticides.
Urgent action
The licences to manufacture and sell pesticides were granted 40 years ago. Now we have plenty of new scientific data on the impact of these on children and adults — enough to revoke many of these licences. The government needs to examine all licensed pesticides and their health impacts. Otherwise, our children will never forgive us.
The writer, an environment specialist, has worked with several government and non-government organisations