UC Berkeley and University of Washington Children's Centers Find
Susceptibility to Pesticides is Highly Variable Among Latina
Women and Children (March 2, 2006) Some children may be 26 to 50
times more susceptible to exposure to certain organophosphate
(OP) pesticides than other newborns, and 65 to 130 times more
sensitive than some adults, according to a new study from the
University of California, Berkeley, and the University of
Washington Children's Centers. The study, published in the
journal Pharmacogenetics and Genomics, reveals far greater
variability in susceptibility to pesticides than previously
predicted. Since 2001, home use of OP pesticides, specifically
diazinon and chlorpyrifos, has been restricted by the EPA,
mainly because of risk to children. However, the researchers
said there may still be residual exposure to diazinon and
chlorpyrifos from household use before they were banned, and
some structural uses for the pesticides are still approved,
including treatment of house foundations with chl