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Extent of exposure of farm workers
to organophosphate pesticides
in the Jordan Valley
R.M Sansur,1 S. Kuttab,2 and S. Abu-AI-Haj1
Center for Environmental and Occupational Health Sciences and
2Chemistry Department, Birzeit University, West Bank, via Israel
The aim of this study was to determine the extent to which farm workers
were exposed to organophosphate pesticides and, based on the results, to
develop a program to teach farmers safe practices in the handling and use
of pesticides. Low acetyicholinesterase (AChE) levels were found among
participating farmers; recovery was dependent on the dose. AChE levels
were higher during the spraying season than at the end of the season
possibly due to enzyme induction resulting from long-term exposure. Legs
were the parts of the body most exposed during spraying. A knowledge,
attitudes, and practices (KAP) survey revealed lack of knowledge about
the safe handling of pesticides and the dose required for spraying. An
intensive long-term training program on the safe use of pesticides is
urgently needed.
When used properly, pesticides have been of tremendous benefit to humans
and the environment, but, when used carelessly, they have caused considerable
and, in some instances, inestimable harm. In developing countries, the
increasing use of pesticides in agriculture and the absence of adequate worker
education and effective control measures have given rise to a growing concern
about the magnitude of the health risk to farm workers exposed to these
chemicals. It is suspected that many illnesses and deaths go unrecorded.
In the Jordan Valley of the West Bank (Al Ghor), spraying of crops with
pesticides has increased tremendously over the last 20 years. The increased
use of dangerous organophosphate insecticides as substitutes for chlorinated
hydrocarbons, which degrade more slowly and have a higher environmental
impact, has added a new dimension to a serious occupational health problem
in this area.
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