Pesticides
Recall your last
night's meal. Go to the What's on my Food website. and enter the foods that comprised your meal. The
information on the site is based on foods that are NOT "organic". What
did you find out about the pesticide residues that may be in or on your food?
Below is a list of foods that were part of my meal last
night. The list also contains information about the pesticide residues that may
have been in those foods.
· Pinto beans: Boscalid; Thiabendazole.
o
Thiabendazole: It is found 0.3% of the time in
conventionally grown pinto beans. Also, it has known carcinogens and
contains developmental or reproductive toxins.
· Potatoes: Chlorpropham; Imidacloprid; Flutolanil; Azoxystrobin; Thiabendazole;
Boscalid; Thiamethoxam; Metalaxyl/Mefenoxam; Endosulfan sulfate; Pentachloroaniline
(PCA); Pentachlorobenzene (PCB); Aldicarb sulfoxide; Pentachlorophenyl methyl
sulfide; Clothianidin; Aldicarb sulfone; Phorate sulfoxide; Dieldrin; Quintozene
(PCNB); DDE; Phorate sulfone; Metribuzin; DDT; Tetrahydrophthalimide (THPI); Trifluralin;
Fluridone; Heptachlor epoxide; Oxamyl oxime; Endosulfan II; Oxamyl; Buprofezin;
Bifenthrin; Metolachlor; Chlordane cis; Methamidophos; Carbaryl.
o
Imidacloprid: It is found 25.5% of
the time in conventionally grown potatoes and it is highly toxic to bees.
· Lettuce: Imidacloprid; Mandipropamide; Propamocarb hydrochloride; Dimethomorph;
Cyhalothrin; DCPA; Permethrin cis; Permethrin trans; Fenamidone; Boscalid; Metalaxyl/Mefenoxam;
Cypermethrin; Flonicamid; Spirotetramat; Pyraclostrobin; Methomyl; Endosulfan
sulfate; Thiamethoxam; Methoxyfenozide; Endosulfan I; Endosulfan II;
Acetamiprid; Oxydemeton methyl; Famoxadone; Azoxystrobin; Fluopicolide; Bensulide
Oxon (degradate of bensulide); Methamidophos; Cymoxanil; Cyfluthrin;
Trifluralin; Buprofezin; Acephate; Bifenthrin; Oxydemeton methyl sulfone;
Linuron; Quinoxyfen; Oxamyl oxime; Iprodione; Dieldrin; Trifloxystrobin;
Flutolanil; Indoxacarb; Esfenvalerate+Fenvalerate Total; Myclobutanil;
Vinclozolin; Bensulide; Dimethoate; Dicloran Mevinphos Total; Endrin; Diazinon.
o
Cypermethrin: It is found 8.0% of the time in conventionally grown lettuce, it
has possible carcinogens, and it contains suspected hormone disruptors.
· An apple: Zinphos methyl; Chlorpyrifos; Phosmet; Oxamyl; Carbaryl;
Parathion methyl; Phosphamidon; Omethoate; Dimethoate; Diazinon; Methomyl;
Acephate; Methamidophos; Malathion.
o
Azinphos methyl: Is found 76.3% of the time in a single serving of conventionally
grown apples. Additionally, it contains neurotoxins, it is a suspected hormone
disruptor, and it is moderately toxic to bees.
What do
you think about this?
I am shocked at how many different pesticide residues there are in the
foods that I ate. This was just in one meal. I can only imagine how many
pesticide residues I have consumed during the past year. Also, the mix of
pesticides concerns me. We do not know what long-term side effects take place
on the human body from consuming various pesticides. I wish the produce had
been labeled in the store with the names of the potential pesticide residues,
along with known side effects. If it had been labeled with this information I
would have made different choices. As it is, I feel like my choices were taken
away from me due to the lack of transparency.
What
should we be doing about this in terms of public health, not just in terms of
our personal choices?
In terms of public health, we should be working on policy
reform to better regulate farming practices and reduce the ability for farmers
to use multiple toxic pesticides on a crop. Additionally, regulations should
require that all produce sold to the public be labeled with any/all pesticide residues
that the produce may contain. Labeling produce would allow the consumer to make
more informed decisions about the foods that they eat. On top of this, we
should increase public outreach and education programs to improve the public’s
knowledge on this topic. Most individuals are unaware of the potential health
risks that are involved in consuming produce with high amounts of pesticide
residue. By further educating the public on this issue, people are more likely
to demand that their government implement long-term changes to increase
labeling transparency and better regulate pesticide use in farming.
References:
· Eat the
Peach, Not the Pesticide. Retrieved from: https://www.consumerreports.org/cro/health/natural-health/pesticides/index.htm#
Hello Angie! This is a very informative post. Like you I was also very shocked about how many pesticides reside in a single meal. I agree that each product that has pesticide residues inside them should have a label and the effects of the pesticide residues. This makes me wonder how will people react if they see these labels when buying food at the grocery food. Will it make them not want to buy it? What will they end up buying?
ReplyDeleteI don't understand why and how farmers are allowed to use so many different pesticides to try and keep pests from eating into crops and for longer-lasting life for crops. How is it that our government is still allowing this toxicity to occur when they have had repeated lobbyists and Scientists prove that it's making populations suffer from more allergies, respiratory issues, and illnesses? In just lettuce alone, I found 52 pesticides. This is so rediculous and disappointing that in this day and age we still don't have reform.
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