Pesticides and the Immune System: The Public Health Risks

There are substantial grounds for concern about the public health risks from pesticide-induced suppression of the immune system, especially in less developed countries and countries in economic transition. The tonnage of pesticides used in these countries will continue increasing as agricultural production intensifies. Still widely used are chemicals with known acute and chronic toxicity -- including many older products that have been banned, severely restricted, or withdrawn from agricultural uses in the United States and Europe. In Japan, Europe, and the United States, there are also risks to farm workers and others significantly exposed to pesticides, though such groups make up much smaller fractions of total populations and, by and large, exposure levels are lower.