Occupational Behaviors and Farmworkers’ Pesticide Exposure: Findings from a Study in Monterey County, California

Details

• Personal Author:
  Barr DB ; Bradman A ; Camacho J ; Castorina R ; Eskenazi B ; Jewell NP ; Lopez J ; Salvatore LA ; Snyder J
• Description:
  Background: We studied the relationship between behaviors promoted through the US Environmental Protection Agency Worker Protection Standard (WPS) and other programs and agricultural pesticide exposures in 73 strawberry fieldworkers employed in Monterey County, California. Methods: Farmworkers' behaviors were assessed via self-report, and organophosphorus (OP) pesticide exposure was measured using dimethyl alkylphosphate (DMAP) and malathion dicarboxylic acid (MDA) urinary metabolite levels. Results: Wearing WPS-recommended clothing, wearing clean work clothes, and the combination of handwashing with soap and wearing gloves were associated with decreases in DMAP and MDA metabolite levels. Despite these protective behaviors, however, participants had significantly higher levels of exposure as compared with a national reference sample. Conclusions: Interventions that facilitate compliance with these behaviors may be effective in decreasing fieldworkers' pesticide exposures. However, further efforts are needed to reduce the exposure disparities experienced by farmworkers and decrease the potential for ''take home'' exposures to farmworkers' families. [Description provided by NIOSH]
• Subjects:
  Agriculture Behavior Environmental Exposure Environmental Monitoring Family Farmers Hazardous Substances Insecticides Occupational Exposure Occupational Health Organophosphates Personal Protective Equipment Protective Clothing Safety

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• Keywords:
  Agricultural-chemicals Agricultural-workers Employee-exposure Environmental-exposure Exposure-assessment Families Occupational-exposure Organo-phosphorus-pesticides Personal-protective-equipment Pesticide-residues Pesticides-and-agricultural-chemicals Protective-clothing Standards Toxic-materials

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• ISSN:
  0271-3586
• Document Type:
  Text
• Funding:
  Grant
• Genre:
  Journal Article
• Place as Subject:
  California ; Georgia ; Kentucky ; OSHA Region 4 ; OSHA Region 9
• CIO:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH)
• Topic:
  Workplace Safety & Health
• Location:
  North America
• Volume:
  51
• Issue:
  10
• NIOSHTIC Number:
  nn:20034823
• Citation:
  Am J Ind Med 2008 Oct; 51(10):782-794
• Contact Point Address:
  Brenda Eskenazi, Center for Children's Environmental Health Research, School of Public Health, University of California, Berkeley, 2150 Shattuck Avenue, Suite 600, Berkeley, CA 94720-7380
• Email:
  eskenazi@berkeley.edu
• CAS Registry Number:
  4,4'-Diaminodiphenylmethane (CAS RN 101-77-9)
• Federal Fiscal Year:
  2009
• Performing Organization:
  University of California, Berkeley
• Peer Reviewed:
  True
• Start Date:
  20010930
• Source Full Name:
  American Journal of Industrial Medicine
• End Date:
  20060929
• Collection(s):
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha-512:d6893e3b223719982cc2957544284521d089c8657818ab34df88bd0ab4d9aed3ab52b1cadcca56608412a3ea0ac55ad18bc34295203ca1acd360b73e68fa683b
• Download URL:
  https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/186887/cdc_186887_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 232.98 KB ]