APPENDIX II-BZ:
“An Open Letter by Concerned Physicians and Scientists: Stop the
Indiscriminate Spraying of ‘Friendly Fire’ Pesticides.”
This appendix is copied from:
http://www.cche‑info.com/pdf/wnvopenletter2001gilka.pdf
AN OPEN LETTER
BY CONCERNED PHYSICIANS
AND SCIENTISTS
STOP THE INDISCRIMINATE SPRAYING
OF “FRIENDLY FIRE” PESTICIDES
Re: INDISCRIMINATE AND MASSIVE SPRAYING AGAINST
MOSQUITOES
CARRYING WEST NILE VIRUS –– PUBLIC HEALTH, LEGAL, AND
OTHER
RAMIFICATIONS.
SUMMARY: INDISCRIMINATE AND UNNECESSARY SPRAYING OF
“FRIENDLY FIRE” PESTICIDES, ESPECIALLY IN HEAVILY
POPULATED
URBAN AREAS, IS FAR MORE DANGEROUS TO HUMAN HEALTH
AND
THE NATURAL ENVIRONMENT THAN WEST NILE VIRUS.
THE HEALTH OF MANY PEOPLE IS DETERIORATING AND WILL
FURTHER DETERIORATE, SOMETIMES SERIOUSLY, AS A RESULT
OF
EXPOSURE TO “FRIENDLY FIRE PESTICIDES” USED IN THE
CHEMICAL WAR AGAINST MOSQUITOES. THOSE WHO ARE
ESPECIALY VULNERABLE INCLUDE CHILDREN, THE OFFSPRING
OF
PREGNANT WOMEN, CHEMICALLY SENSITIVE OR
IMMUNOSUPPRESSED INDIVIDUALS, SUCH AS PATIENTS WITH
AIDS
AND CANCER, AND THOSE SUFFERING WITH ASTHMA AND OTHER
ALERGIES. THERE SHOULD BE WIDESPREAD AWARENESS OF THE
FAR-REACHING PUBLIC HEALTH, ECONOMIC AND LEGAL
RAMIFICATIONS OF SUCH MASSIVE SPRAYING. THERE ARE
OTHER,
SAFE APPROACHES THAT CAN BE USED TO ADDRESS THIS
ISSUE.
We, the undersigned physicians and
scientists, have a particular
interest in the impact of chemical
pesticides on human health, and in
ensuring that there is a proper
widespread awareness about this
issue.
We want to alert everyone to the
little known data published in
peer reviewed scientific journals
which has far reaching
public health and legal
consequences.
Our grave concern lies with the fact
that resorting to a mass
spraying program to protect the population
against mosquitoes
carrying the
fire" pesticides. The health
impact of such spraying affects not only
those living in the area, but may
potentially affect visitors as well. It
has been recognized that even a
single exposure can trigger
manifestation of clinical symptoms
in predisposed individuals. These
include those living in the area as
well as transient visitors passing
through. This program poses much
more danger to human
health than the extremely small
health risk presented by the
mosquito, the carrier of this virus,
run very little risk of serious
illness.
· According to the Centers for Disease Control (CDC)
extremely low (1).
· The New York City Department of Health Question and
Answer Bulletin advises that, "very few
mosquitoes --
perhaps only one out of 1,000 -- are
infected. Even
if you are bitten by an infected
female mosquito,
your chances of developing illness
are roughly
one in 300" (2).
If symptoms do develop, they are
usually mild and include headaches, muscle
aches, skin rashes and swollen lymph
glands. More serious infections may
cause headaches with high fever. It
is extremely rare for a person to develop
encephalitis (1,2). Almost all
people who developed West Nile virus
encephalitis in New York City and
the surrounding areas in 1999 (62 people,
seven died) and 2000 (11 people, one
died) were elderly and
immunosuppressed.
Furthermore, even in those cases
where death was attributed to
West Nile virus infection, the cause
of death in these cases
may not be West Nile virus. West Nile virus positively could
be a
coincidental finding. In other
words, the cause of death may have
been some disease process unrelated
to the West Nile virus.
Hundreds of individuals who had no
symptoms tested positive
for West Nile virus antibodies,
proving that they were exposed
to the virus. They never became ill; and until they were tested,
they did not even know that they had
been exposed to the virus (3).
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Compared to thousands of people who
die each year of the flu
(approximately 2,500 in the New York
City metropolitan area
alone), or the number of children
who die of asthma, the
number of people who tested positive
for West Nile virus and
died of encephalitis -- eight people
in the last two years
combined -- is extremely small.
THE VIRUS IS NOT TRANSMITTED FROM
PERSON TO
PERSON.
West Nile virus is transmitted to
humans by mosquitoes, not
from person to person. Female mosquitoes acquire the virus
when biting an infected bird. The
virus must be repeatedly
transferred back and forth between infected
mosquitoes and animal
reservoirs (usually birds) before it
poses a risk to humans.
INEFFICACY OF PESTICIDE SPRAYING
Indiscriminate pesticide spraying
over an urban area is an ineffective
and very dangerous attempt at
controlling mosquitoes, and thereby
controlling the West Nile virus
(4-29). Not only will repeated
spraying fail to eradicate the
mosquitoes, the
spray program
leads to the survival of those mosquitoes
resistant to pesticides.
This resistance is passed on to new
generations, leading to endless
cycles of increased pesticide
spraying each year.
Health
officials in New York have
already announced that they are
planning to continue the spraying
repeatedly in future years.
SAFE EFFECTIVE WAYS TO CONTROL
MOSQUITOES DO
EXIST
Ironically, these "friendly
fire" pesticides are most dangerous
to the same group of people for
whose protection the
spraying is being conducted: those
with weakened immune
systems, small children, and the
elderly.
Additionally, the impact
of spraying is especially harmful to
chemically sensitive people,
those suffering from asthma and
other allergies, and to the offspring
of pregnant women.
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Even the recommended mosquito
repellent D.E.E.T. can have
serious repercussions. In 1998,
D.E.E.T. was found to cause
seizures and even death in children (3,30).
There are safer, more
effective ways than using chemical pesticide
use to control mosquitoes. These
methods include disrupting
mosquito breeding cycles by removing stagnant water, etc., as
recommended by New York City
Department of Health; safe natural
mosquito repellents, etc.
Among natural mosquito repellent
products containing herbal
extracts and oils is Nature 99
Herbal Extract, a natural repellant
containing essential oils from the
twigs and leaves of the Eucalyptus
Citriodora plant which has an
extraordinarily high content of citronella.
Other natural products include Royal
Neem (a blend of herbs,
essential oils and aloe), Nature's
Body Guard, and Zetastop.
Combining these approaches will not
only avoid damage to
human health and the ecosystem, but
it will also avert
litigation and the economic
consequences brought about by
the current program.
IMPACT OF PESTICIDES ON HUMAN HEALTH
To properly assess the impact of
pesticides on human health, it is
not enough to view the aerial and
truck spraying in isolation. It is
necessary to take into account all other
sources of pesticide
exposure as well. The combined effect of
these various exposures
and their interactions (known as
"synergistic effects") can strongly
increase the harmful consequences of
spraying (9).
Pesticide residues are found
everywhere -- in air, water, soil, rain,
fog, snow, food, livestock,
wildlife, and human beings. Chemical
pesticides and other pollutants are
constantly being woven into our
bodies. They have been detected in
the body tissues of everyone
tested, regardless of country, place
of origin, residence, occupation,
age, sex or social class.
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A United States/Canadian study has
detected pesticides in the
amniotic fluid surrounding the fetus
in one third of human
pregnancies (31). Pesticides and
other pollutants have also been
detected in the body tissues of
children even before their birth
and in the fluid surrounding the
eggs of infertile Canadian
women (9). The long term and future impact
of such exposure is not
fully known because throughout the
millions of years of our
existence, humanity had never been
exposed to chemical pesticides
until recently.
However it is known that
exposure to chemical pesticide residues,
especially chronic exposure, even at
low levels, can cause:
genetic damage
birth defects
disruption of hormone regulation
defective sexual development
brain damage
Parkinson's Disease
multiple sclerosis
allergies
exacerbation of asthma
cancer
and many other health problems.
Especially disturbing is the finding
that cancer, genetic damage
and other health problems related to pesticide exposure may be
transmitted by affected individuals not only to
their offspring, but
also to further generations (9).
Even a single exposure to pesticides
can trigger:
latent environmental sensitivities
allergies
chronic fatigue syndrome
behavioral changes such as
irritability, anxiety, depression,
aggressiveness and personality
changes
concentration difficulties, memory
and learning problems
hormone disruption
erectile dysfunction
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loss of libido
other health problems (4-29).
New York Mayor Rudolph Giuliani
stated that "Sometimes you've got
to make tough choices and people get
angry at you. ... The reality is
that danger to human life is more
important than birds, fish and
insects." What has not been
taken into account is that the danger to
human health caused by the
indiscriminate spraying of pesticides is
far greater than the danger of
acquiring viral encephalitis from
mosquitoes.
In their book, Chemical Eposures
-- Low Levels and High Stakes
(4), Nicholas Ashford, Ph.D., J.D.,
associate professor of technology
and policy at the Massachussetts
Institute of Technology, and
Claudia Miller, M.D., state:
"In a survey of 6,800 persons
claiming to be
chemically sensitive, 80 percent
asserted they knew
'when, where, with what, and how
they were made ill.'
Of the 80 percent, 60 percent --
almost half of those
who replied -- blamed
pesticides."
THE IMPACT OF CHEMICAL PESTICIDES ON
IMMUNITY
Although some pesticides have been
banned or restricted because
they were recognized as posing
serious threats to human health, so
far little attention has been given
to what may be the greatest
danger of pesticides -- impairment of
the human immune
system (32).
The World Resources Institute's
report "Pesticides and the
Immune System: The Public Health Risks," (32) documents the
impact of widely used chemical pesticides
on the immunity of
animals as well as humans. Their
conclusion, based on an extensive
body of experimental and
epidemiological research from around the
world is that: Impairment of the
immune system by chemical
pesticides can lead to allergies,
autoimmune disorders such
as lupus and cancer. It may also
lead to infections to which
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one may be normally resistant (9,32). In other words exposure
to spraying with chemical pesticides
may actually increase the
risk of developing West Nile virus
encephalitis.
The World Resources Institute
presents scientific evidence that
pesticide-related health problems
are much more serious than
what is generally acknowledged, and
that the steps now
underway to resolve this issue are
far from adequate (32).
In 1999, to quell mosquitoes thought
to be carrying West Nile
virus, New York City aerially
sprayed Fyfanon ULV (malathion),
a potential cancer-triggering
pesticide. The NY State
Department of Environmental
Conservation has attributed a
1999 die-off of thousands of fish in
Staten Island to Malathion
poisoning. The spraying campaign
subsequently affected the
Hudson River area, the Long Island
Sound and the Great
South Bay, and has been blamed for
causing the largest mass
extermination of lobsters in
history. Roughly eleven million
lobsters, 90 per cent of the full
population, perished.
Connecticut and New York lobstermen
plan to file suit against
the companies that manufacture and
apply the pesticides used
in spraying. Seventy five million
dollars is being sought in
compensatory damages. The lawsuit is
the culmination of nine
months of research conducted by a
group of scientists.
Last year, the pesticides Anvil
10+10 (10 percent Sumithrin, 10
percent piperonyl butoxide, and 80
percent "inert" ingredients) and
Scourge (Resmethrin) were used. Both
of these pesticides are Type
I synthethic pyrethroids,
manufactured in the laboratory to mimic the
natural anti-insect pyrethrins
extracted from chrysanthemum flowers.
Anvil 10+10 is a relatively new pesticide. There have
been few tests of any kind on
this product on either animal or human subjects.
Although both Anvil 10+10 and
Scourge have been approved for sale, this approval
does not mean they are
harmless. According to the
10+10 nor Scourge has ever been tested for their
impact on the immune
system because "it has not been required to test
for immunity" (33).
Recent research on pyrethroids has
found that they have a mode of
action similar to chlorinated
pesticides such as cyclodienes
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8
(chlordane, aldrin, etc.). These
pesticides were banned in the United
States in the 1980's due to their
dangerous impact on human health
and the environment.
A 1998 study by Drs. Joan Garey and
Mary S. Wolff of
the main pesticide in Anvil 10+10, disrupts human hormone
balance and has been shown to
increase the growth of breast
cancer cells in test tubes (34).
The study concluded: "Overall,
our studies imply that each pyrethroid
compound is unique in its ability to
influence several cellular
pathways. These findings suggest
that pyrethroids should be
considered to be hormone disruptors,
and their potential to affect
endocrine function in humans and
wildlife should be investigated"
(36).
PANDORA'S BOX
Once pesticides and other chemicals
are released into the
environment, their spread cannot be
controlled. For example,
radioactively traced pesticides
sprayed over the UK were detected
five to seven days later in the
southern USA; traces of insecticides
used in tropical areas were detected
in Arctic trees (35). Global air
currents, hurricanes, etc., can
transport pesticides and other
chemicals even to other hemisphere
(6,32).
The inability to contain the impact
of chemical weapons to a desired
geographical area was recognized
already during World War I and
was the main reason why, after World
War I, the use of chemical
weapons was banned by international
agreement. (This fact has
been subsequently forgotten.)
It is estimated that 6 to 15 per
cent of the population is
chemically sensitive. If only 10 per
cent of an 8 million
population would be chemically
sensitive, the number of
people potentially affected by
chemical pesticides, such as
Anvil 10+10 and Scourge, which have
a tendency to cause
allergies and neurological problems,
could reach eight
hundred thousand people.
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To these eight hundred thousand
potentially affected people
must be added an additional unknown
number of children as
well as the offspring of pregnant
women who may be
negatively
affected by residual traces of
pesticides while in the womb. Both
these groups may become sensitized
and may develop adverse
reactions ranging from mild to life
threatening.
Considering the cumulative
multigenerational destructive
impact of pesticides, especially on
children's development
and behavior, it is frightening to
imagine the delayed
consequences of repeated pesticide
spraying for those who
have allergies or weakened immune
systems, for those who
are chemically sensitive, as well as
for our children and future
generations.
ALL LIFE FORMS INCLUDING HUMANS ARE
VULNERABLE
TO TOXIC EFFECTS OF PESTICIDES
Cells are the basic structural unit
of plants, insects, animals and
human beings. Despite the large
differences in function and shape
of our cells, we share the same
basic cell blueprint, including the
same basic biochemical metabolic
processes, with other living
organisms, including mosquitoes.
Each cell – whether from a plant or
an insect or an animal -
is a microscopic bag with a nucleus
(apart from red cells),
containing chromosomes in the form
of DNA, and a fluid
material called cytoplasm. The cell
is surrounded by a
membrane -- an "outer
skin" -- and contains additional
specialized structures such as
mitochondria for the
generation of energy.
Children's special susceptibility to
pesticides was first widely
publicized by the National Research
Council (NRC) in their 1993
report Pesticides in the Diets of
Infants and Children. The NRC
concluded that children are not
adequately protected from
pesticides:
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· Children are exposed to pesticides early during
their prenatal development when the pesticides and
other pollutants are shifted from
the bodies of their
mothers through placenta to their
body tissues.
· They then receive an additional load through breast milk
and later through the food.
· On average, children receive greater exposure to
pesticides because they consume, for
their size, more
calories, drink more water (frequently
contaminated by
pesticides) and eat more fruit
and vegetables (which
are commonly sprayed), and breathe more air than
adults.
· Children's metabolic systems are still immature,
their enzymes, livers and kidneys
have difficulties
eliminating toxic substances.
The NRC recommended changes in the
regulation of pesticides.
Many of these changes were included
in a 1996 law (the Food
Quality Protection Act (FQPA)), but
have yet to be fully implemented.
SAFE APPROACH
An effort must be made to develop
and rediscover the safe
approaches to the control of pests
including mosquitoes. There are
safer, more effective ways than
pesticide use to control
mosquitoes, such as disrupting mosquito breeding
cycles by
removing stagnant water; the use of
products such as Mosquito
Magnet, safe natural mosquito
repellents, (or less ideally, BTI
approach - Bacillus thuringiensis v.
israelis which should not be
sprayed in the cities due to
potential impact on human health). Such
approaches will not only avoid
damage to human health and
ecosystem, but will also avert
litigation.
The use of chemical pesticides
started about fifty years ago. The
chemical pesticides that were once
touted as being a "wonderful,
safe approach" to pest control
are now known to contaminate our
bodies and the bodies of our
children, even before their birth. They
are destroying our ecosystem -- and
us.
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Chemical pesticides are deliberately
made to be poisonous in
order to kill or slowly destroy
undesirable forms of life.
However, because we share the common
basic cellular and
biochemical blueprint with other
life forms, chemical
pesticides produce "toxic broad
spectrum" impacts,
damaging or killing various useful
insects, animals, and plants
as well as damaging human health.
If we do not stop the indiscriminate
use of pesticides, we will
continue to endanger the quality of
our own health and more
crucially, the healthy physical and
mental development of our
children and future generations.
As stated by Agriculture
kill… All chemical pesticides are
harmful to humans.
For this reason, the indiscriminate
and unnecessary use
of chemical pesticides needs to be
abandoned and
outlawed.
Signed,
(Please see next page)
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12
Prof. Emer. William Rea, M.D.
First World Professioral Chair of
Environmental Medicine,
University of Surrey, UK
Director of Environmental Health
Unit
Dallas, Texas, U.S.A.
Ed Napke, B.Sc., M.D., DPH.
Former Medical Officer in Charge of
the
Canadian Drug Adverse Reaction
Reporting Program and Canadian
Poison Control Program (1965-1989)
Ottawa, Ontario, Canada
Prof. Emer. Joseph Cummins, Ph.D.
Department of Genetics
University of Western Ontario
London, Ontario, Canada
Prof. Samuel Epstein
Professor of Environmental and
Occupational
Medicine, School of Public Health,
University of Illinois at Chicago
Chairman, Cancer Prevention
Coalition
U.S.A.
Libuse Gilka, M.D.
Physicians and Scientists for a
Healthy World
Ottawa, Ontario, Canada
Sheldon Krimsky, Ph.D.
Department of Urban &
Environmental
Policy, Tufts University
Melford, Massachusetts, U.S.A.
Rosalie Bertell, Ph.D., G.N.S.U.
International Institute of Concern
for Public
Health
Toronto, Ontario, Canada
E. Angelopoulos, Ph.D.
Professor of Biology Parantology and
Entomology
Dalhousie University
Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada
Prof. Emer. Ross H. Hall, Ph.D.
Former Chairperson, Department of
Biology McMaster University Health
Science Faculty and Ministry
Environmental Priority Substance
Panel
Former Chairperson Health Committee
Dr.
K.J. Kerr
110
Manor Road E.
Toronto On l M5S 1P0
Page
13
International Joint Committee
Hamilton, Ontario, Canada
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____________________________________________________
_
ADDITIONAL COMMENTS
____________________________________________________
_
- A study done by the Roger Williams General Hospital,
Brown University: This study on
pyrethroids concludes:
"Chronic exposure of humans or
animals to pesticides
containing these compounds may
result in disturbances in
endocrine effects." [Journal of
Steroid Biochemistry, March
1990, volume 35, issue 3-4, pages
409-414];
- Cambridge University: A report issued in June 2000 by the
Royal Society in England and written
by a group from
Cambridge University called for
international cooperation to
deal with the dangers posed by
endocrine disrupting
chemicals, including pyrethroids,
and recommends reducing
human exposure to these chemicals.
There are also links
between insecticides and reduction
of testosterone levels in
men:
- University of Greifswald: Several pesticides used as
herbicides, insecticides and
fungicides known to be
endocrine disrupting chemicals were
examined in this series
of German studies. Acute and chronic
pesticide exposure
led to changes in sex hormone
concentrations, with
concentrations of testosterone
decreasing one day after
acute exposure. These studies found
"a hormonal and
immune suppression after acute
exposure." ["Disruption of
male sex hormones with regard to
pesticides," Toxicology
Letters, June 30, 1999; 107(1
3):225-31]; Also, see links
between pyrethroids and childhood
brain cancers:
- A study of pesticides and childhood brain cancers has
revealed a strong relationship
between brain cancers and
compounds used to kill fleas and
ticks, according to a report
published in Environmental Health
Perspectives. The study
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concludes "The specific
chemicals associated with
children's brain cancers were
pyrethrins and pyrethroids
(which are synthetic pyrethrins,
such as permethrin,
tetramethrin, allethrin, resmethrin
and fenvalerate) and
chlorpyrifos (trade name:
Dursban)." [Janice M. Pogoda and
Susan Preston Martin,
"Household Pesticides and Risk of
Pediatric Brain Tumors," Environmental
Health
Perspectives, vol. 105, no. 11
(November 1997), pages
1214-1220.] The EPA, in June 2000,
halted sales of
Dursban. And, links between
pyrethroids and neurological
damage:
- Several studies have indicated neurological damage
resulting from exposure to
pyrethroids, and some of the
damages have been found to be long
term. Ludwig
Maximilians University: This study,
conducted by the
Physiological Institute at Ludwig
Maximilians University in
Munich, Germany, found that although
"a majority of
complaints following an acute
pyrethroid intoxication
disappeared after the end of
exposure," several effects
were still seen in patients after
more than two years. Among
these long term symptoms were
"(1) cerebro organic
disorders (reduced intellectual
performance with 20%-30%
reduction of endurance during mental
work, personality
disorder), visual disturbances,
dysacousia, tinnitus; (2)
sensomotor polyneuropathy, most
frequently in the lower
legs; (3) vegetative nervous
disorders," including increased
heat sensitivity and reduced
exercise tolerance due to
circulatory disorder. The study
concludes "Many of these
patients exhibit pathological
autoimmune diagnostical
findings and developed autoimmune
diseases." [Toxicology
Letters, 1999 June 30;107(1
3):161-76.];
- Uppsala University: This study, conducted by the
Department of Environmental
Toxicology at Uppsala
University in Sweden studied mice,
not humans, but found
that "low dose exposure"
to pyrethroids "resulted in
irreversible changes in adult brain
function in the mouse"
when exposed during the growth
period. This occurred at
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levels of exposure less than what
was found to affect adult
mice. The study also found
"neonatal exposure to a low
dose of a neurotoxic agent can lead
to an increased
susceptibility in adults to an agent
having a similar
neurotoxic action, resulting in
additional behavioral
disturbances and learning
disabilities." [Neurotoxicology,
1997;18(3):719-26.]
- Northwestern University Medical School: A series of
investigations conducted at
Northwestern's Department of
Molecular Pharmacology and
Biological Chemistry in
Chicago, has found neurological
damage from pyrethroids.
One study, conducted by
international expert Toshio
Narahashi, finds nervous system
damage from pyrethroids
to be comparable to DDT. This study
found that "Detailed
voltage clamp and patch clamp
analyses have revealed that
pyrethroids and DDT modify the
sodium channel to remain
open for an extended period of
time." The result of this
damage is "potent effects on
the nervous system." ["Nerve
membrane ion channels as the target
site of environmental
toxicants," Environmental
Health Perspectives, 1987
April;71:25-9.];
- A separate study found that pyrethroids cause "membrane
depolarization, repetitive
discharges and synaptic
disturbances leading to
hyperexcitatory symptoms of
poisoning in animals." This
study found that only 1% "of
sodium channel population is
required to be modified by
pyrethroids to produce severe
hyperexcitatory symptoms."
["Neuronal ion channels as the
target sites of insecticides,"
Pharmacol Toxicology, 1996
July;79(1):1-14.];
- Links between pyrethroids and thyroid damage: A study
conducted by four scientists on a
variety of pesticides found
a connection to thyroid damage,
although this study was
conducted on rats and not on humans.
The study
concludes "exposure to
organochlorine, organophosphorus,
and pyrethroid insecticides for a
relatively short time can
suppress thyroid secretory activity
in young adult rats." The
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study also said a decrease in body
weight seen "suggests
that pyrethroid insecticides can
inhibit growth rate." [Journal
of Applied Toxicology, vol. 16, no.
5, pages 397-400, 26
references, 1996.] For comprehensive
review of
information on Malathion, see
Loretta Brenner, Journal of
Pesticide Reform, Volume 12, Number
4, Winter 1992.
Northwest Coalition for Alternatives
to Pesticides, Eugene,
OR. Also, J Exp Zool 1999 Aug
1;284(3):355-9,
"Morphological alterations in
mouse testis by a single dose
of malathion." Contreras HR,
Bustos Obregon E Physiology
and Biophysical Program, Institute
of Biomedical Sciences,
University of Chile, Santiago 7,
Chile; and J Wildl Dis 1999
Jul;35(3):536 41, "Effects of
malathion on disease
susceptibility in Woodhouse's
toads." Taylor SK, Williams
ES, Mills KW, Department of
Veterinary Sciences,
University of Wyoming, Laramie
82070, USA. In these two
1999 animal studies (which were done
subsequent to
Brenner's review), one shows that a
single dose of
malathion impaired the resistance of
frogs to infection. The
other shows that a single dose of
malathion damaged
sperm and other cells of the male
reproductive system in
mice. Studies like these raise a red
flag with regard to
human exposure -- even one time
exposure.
This Open Letter is distributed by
The Coalition for Alternatives to
Pesticides (CAP),
Staten Island Citizens for Healthy
Alternatives (SICHA),
the No Spray Coalition, and
SAFE NYC.
Refer all questions and comments to:
Édith Smeesters (CAP president)
(450) 441-3899 capnaq@aira.com
Katherine Barbera, (SICHA) (718)
273-5489
Louis Blois, (SICHA)
Blois@Prodigy.net
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