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Pesticide residue

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Pesticide residue refers to the pesticides that may remain on or in food after they are applied to food crops.[1] The levels of these residues in foods is often stipulated by regulatory bodies in many countries. Exposure of the general population to these residues most commonly occurs through consumption of treated food sources, or being in close contact to areas treated with pesticides such as farms or lawns around houses.[2]

Many of these chemical residues, especially derivatives of chlorinated pesticides, exhibit bioaccumulation which could build up to harmful levels in the body as well as in the environment.[3] Persistent chemicals can be magnified through the food chain, and have been detected in products ranging from meat, poultry, and fish, to vegetable oils, nuts, and various fruits and vegetables.[4]

Pesticide residue by country

European Union

See also: Pesticides in the European Union

In September 2008, the European Union issued new and revised Maximum Residue Limits (MRLs) for the roughly 1,100 pesticides ever used in the world. The revision was intended to simplify the previous system, under which certain pesticide residues were regulated by the Commission, others were regulated by Member States, and others were not regulated at all.[5]

New Zealand

Main article: Pesticide residues in New Zealand

Food Standards Australia New Zealand develops the standards for levels of pesticide residues in foods through a consultation process. The New Zealand Food Safety Authority publishes the maximum limits of pesticide residues for foods produced in New Zealand.[6]

United Kingdom

Monitoring of pesticide residues in the UK began in the 1950s. From 1977 to 2000 the work was carried out by the Working Party on Pesticide Residues (WPPR), until in 2000 the work was taken over by the Pesticide Residue Committee (PRC). The PRC advise the government through the Pesticides Safety Directorate and the Food Standards Agency (FSA).[7]

United States

In the US, tolerances for the amount of pesticide residue that may remain on food are set by the EPA, and measures are taken to keep pesticide residues below the tolerances. The US EPA has a web page for the allowable tolerances.[8] In the US, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and USDA also routinely check food for the actual levels of pesticide residues.

Health Impacts

Many pesticides achieve their intended use of killing pests, by disrupting the nervous system. Due to similarities in brain biochemistry among many different organisms, there is much speculation that these chemicals can have a negative impact on humans as well.[9] There are also studies that show positive correlations between exposure to pesticides through occupational hazard, which tends to be significantly higher than that ingested by the general population through food, and the occurrence of certain cancers.[10] Even though the majority of the general population may not come in direct contact with large quantities of pesticides, many of the pesticide residues that are ingested tend to be lipophilic and can bioaccumulate in the body.[3] Concerns have been raised about the possible role of continuous low-dosage exposure in causing certain cancers. On the other hand, pesticide use has proven to be a valuable tool in combatting disease vectors that spread illness to millions of children and adults each year. They are used in many developing countries to prevent the spread of malaria, leishmaniasis, dengue, and Japanese encephalitis which have an enormous economical burden on society.[4]

Child neurodevelopment

Children are thought to be especially vulnerable to exposure to pesticide residues, especially if exposure occurs at critical windows of development. Due to the greater intake of food relative to bodyweight in children, bioaccumulation effects can prove to be especially harmful.[11] Neurotoxins, and other chemicals that originate from pesticides pose the biggest threat to the developing human brain and nervous system. Since precise spacial and temporal information must be communicated between cells for the proper development of the human CNS, disruptions in the form of miscommunication or damage to neurons can result in permanent and irreversible damages. Presence of pesticide metabolites in urine samples have been implicated in disorders such as: attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), autism, behavioral and emotional problems, and delays in development. There is a lack of p




evidence of a direct cause and effect relationship between long-term, low-dose exposure to pesticide residues and neurological disease, partly because manufacturers are not always legally required to examine potential long-term threats.Cite error: The <ref> tag has too many names (see the help page).[12]

Template:Multicol

Dirty Dozen
  • celery
  • peaches
  • strawberries
  • apples
  • domestic blueberries
  • nectarines
  • sweet bell peppers
  • spinach, kale and collard greens
  • cherries
  • potatoes
  • imported grapes
  • lettuce

Template:Multicol-break

Clean Fifteen
  • onions
  • avocados
  • sweet corn
  • pineapples
  • mango
  • sweet peas
  • asparagus
  • kiwi fruit
  • cabbage
  • eggplant
  • cantaloupe
  • watermelon
  • grapefruit
  • sweet potatoes
  • sweet onions

Template:Multicol-end

Organic food vs Commercial

Even though some organic foods contain significantly less amounts of pesticides than commercially produced products, they still contain certain amounts of residue levels that are persistent in the environment. The methods of organic farming prohibit the use of many pesticides, however certain chemicals could be persistent in the soil, reach the organic produce via pesticide drift from nearby farms, or contaminate produce during transportation to the consumer. It was found that produce grown using organic methods had one third the amount of pesticide residue that was available in commercially produced food. Also, in comparison to food that was grown using Integrated pest management techniques, organic produce showed about 50% less residue.[citation needed] Organic produce has also been shown to generally have a greater level of iron, magnesium, vitamin C, phosphorus, and antioxidant phytochemicals. [13]

Minimizing exposure to pesticide residues

In addition to choosing to buy organic produce, there are certain measures that can be taken to minimize exposure to harmful residues: certain washes are available that remove chemical residues, peeling fruits and vegetables that have known high levels of pesticide residues, and growing your own essential produce.[14]

See also

References

  1. ^ IUPAC, Compendium of Chemical Terminology, 2nd ed. (the "Gold Book") (1997). Online corrected version: (2006–) "pesticide residue". doi:10.1351/goldbook.P04520
  2. ^ "Pesticide Residue". Environmental Protection Agency.
  3. ^ a b Walter J Crinnion. (2009). "Chlorinated Pesticides: Threats to Health and Importance of Detection". Environmental Medicine. 14(4): 347–59. PMID 20030461.
  4. ^ a b Stephen W.C. Chung, Benedict L.S. Chen. (2011). "Determination of organochlorine pesticide residues in fatty foods: A critical review on the analytical methods and their testing capabilities". Journal of Chromatography A. 1218(33): 5555–5567. PMID 21742333.
  5. ^ European Commission. (2008). Plant Protection - Pesticide Residues. Fact Sheet.
  6. ^ "Food Standards". New Zealand Food Safety Authority. Retrieved 2009-02-20.
  7. ^ [1]
  8. ^ [2]
  9. ^ Marina Bjørling-Poulsen, Helle Raun Andersen and Philippe Grandjean. (2008). "Potential developmental neurotoxicity of pesticides used in Europe". Environmental Health. 7:50. PMID 18945337.
  10. ^ ChristosA. Damalas, and IliasG. Eleftherohorinos. (2011). "Pesticide Exposure, Safety Issues, and Risk Assessment Indicators". International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health. 8(5): 1402–19. PMID 21655127. {{cite journal}}: line feed character in |journal= at position 25 (help)
  11. ^ Bernard Weiss, Sherlita Amler and Robert W. Amler. (2004). "Pesticides". Pediatrics. 113(4): 1030–6. PMID 15060196.
  12. ^ "The dirty dozen and clean 15 of produce".
  13. ^ Walter J. Crinnion. (2010). "Organic Foods Contain Higher Levels of Certain Nutrients, Lower Levels of Pesticides, and May Provide Health Benefits for the Consumer". Environmental Medicine. 15(1): 4–12. PMID 20359265.
  14. ^ "What Types of Produce Have the Highest and Lowest Levels of Pesticide Residues?". Organic Consumers Association.


 

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