Pesticides and Health Concerns: What is all the confusion about? - PowerPoint PPT Presentation

Pesticides and Health Concerns: What is all the confusion about? Carol Burns, MPH, PhD The Dow Chemical Company

Pesticides and Cancer No pesticide registered in Canada is classified as a carcinogen by the International Agency for Research on Cancer  or by Health Canada’s PMRA  or by US EPA  or by World Health Organization

Pesticides and Children  Pesticides are tools, not toys.  Health Canada knows this and makes manufacturers study all possible concerns and exposure scenarios.  “There is little proof that exposure to pest - control products at levels commonly used at home pose a risk to the fetus.” March of Dimes  Epidemiologists study moms, babies, and children looking for links to disease.

Epidemiology – what?  Think “Epidemic” and “Study”  Compare groups by exposure  Compare groups by disease

Does “it” cause disease?  We say that  asbestos causes lung cancer.  a high fat diet is associated with obesity.  poor prenatal care is linked to low birth weight.

Why are results confusing?  Some people are exposed to “it” and don’t have disease.  Maybe exposure is very low  Maybe some have good genes  Maybe there are protective exposures  Some people are NOT exposed to “it” and have disease.  Most diseases have multiple causes

OCFP review  Ontario College of Family Physicians review is available online, not in a journal  Treats all pesticides alike  Like comparing aspirin to chemotherapy  Excluded studies of no or decreased risk  Treats all positive studies alike  Did not discuss strengths and weaknesses

What should I know?  Best science is specific science.  Specific to a single pesticide  Specific to a single disease  Accounts for complex human behaviors  Science needs to be repeated.  Experts look for the “weight of evidence”  Not all studies are the same quality

Bottom Line  Health Canada’s PMRA assess and continues to assess all pesticides for health and environmental concerns.  All pesticide’s must by law meet the standard of a “reasonable certainty of no harm”.  Groups will continue to misuse science  Think about the source  Check for balance in reporting