Health Effects of Organophosphate Insecticides.

摘要

The report identifies the health effects associate with exposure to organosphosphate insecticides. The study was undertaken because organophosphate insecticides are rapidly replacing organochlorines. While the organophosphates are generally less persistent in the environment than organocholrines,they are also considered much more toxic to man and insects. They act by inhibiting the enzyme chloinesterase,which disrupts the human nervous system. The following recommendations were made:Improvements should be made in the hazard warnings on labels to make them more clearly understood and more noticeable;tighter controls over unsafe storage and handling must be established; a system for grading pesticides on the basis of effectiveness,human safety,and lack of non-target effects should be adopted.