A case for revisiting the safety of pesticides: a closer look at neurodevelopment.
The quality and quantity of the data about the risk posed to humans by individual pesticides vary considerably. Unlike obvious birth defects, most developmental effects cannot be seen at birth or even later in life. Instead, brain and nervous system disturbances are expressed in terms of how an individual behaves and functions, which can vary considerably from birth through adulthood. In this article I challenge the protective value of current pesticide risk assessment strategies in light of the vast numbers of pesticides on the market and the vast number of possible target tissues and end points that often differ depending upon timing of exposure. Using the insecticide chlorpyrifos as a model, I reinforce the need for a new approach to determine the safety of all pesticide classes. Because of the uncertainty that will continue to exist about the safety of pesticides, it is apparent that a new regulatory approach to protect human health is needed.
Colborn
Theo
T
University of Florida, Gainesville, Florida, and TEDX (The Endocrine Disruption Exchange) Inc., Paonia, Colorado 81428, USA. colborn@tds.net
D004781:Environmental Exposure; D004785:Environmental Pollutants / Q000633:toxicity; D005260:Female; D047109:Fetal Development / Q000187:drug effects; D006801:Humans; D018811:Maternal Exposure; D009420:Nervous System / Q000187:drug effects / Q000254:growth & development; D010573:Pesticide Residues / Q000633:toxicity*; D010575:Pesticides / Q000633:toxicity*; D011247:Pregnancy; D011297:Prenatal Exposure Delayed Effects; D018570:Risk Assessment / Q000331:legislation & jurisprudence
D004785:Environmental Pollutants; D010573:Pesticide Residues; D010575:Pesticides