Fungicides

According to a new study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) there is a connection between pesticide residues and an increased risk of infertility. Even in those who are able to conceive, there is a greater risk of miscarriage due to pesticide exposures. The study examined 325 women undergoing fertility treatments—researchers found a link between those who ate more fruits and vegetables high in pesticide residues and their likelihood of having a baby than those who did not.

State Superintendent of Public Instruction Tom Torlakson praised the California Department of Pesticide Regulation for adopting new rules to further protect students and schools from pesticide exposure. New rules will take effect on Jan. 1 regulating pesticide use near schools and licensed child-care facilities. “Children, teachers, school staff, parents and school communities need safe healthy school environments to learn and succeed, and that includes protection from unintended, unhealthy pesticide exposure,” Torlakson said.

Scientists and public health experts are alarmed by the phenomenon, which they suspect to be symptomatic of underlying toxicity in the environment and the food chain. “Missing eyes, deformed hind legs, missing limbs, extra limbs, partial limbs, limbs that are bent or bony, and abnormally thin or weak limbs are some of the reported frog abnormalities in the Western ghats,” said Dr. S. Muralidharan from the Division of Ecotoxicology at Salim Ali Centre for Ornithology & Natural History.

Die EU-Länder müssen aus Sicht der EU-Kommission mehr tun, um den Einsatz giftiger Pflanzenschutzmittel so weit wie möglich einzudämmen. Die Umsetzung der entsprechenden Richtlinie sei ungenügend, moniert die Brüsseler Behörde. Deutschland kommt aber bei der Überprüfung vergleichsweise gut weg. Viele Menschen sorgten sich wegen Rückständen der Pestizide im Essen und in der Natur, erklärte EU-Gesundheitskommissar Vytenis Andriukaitis. Diese Sorgen nehme man ernst. Die Umsetzung der entsprechenden Richtlinie sei ungenügend, moniert die Brüsseler Behörde.

A new study from the Telethon Institute for Child Health Research has revealed a potential link between professional pesticide treatments in the home and a higher risk of children developing brain tumours. Published this week in the international journal Cancer Causes & Control, the study found that exposure by parents to professional pesticide treatments prior to conception could increase the chances of a child developing a brain tumour.

Gelbe Kralle und ausgebreitete Schwingen: Seeadler (Haliaeetus albicilla) bieten den Besuchern des Feldberger Naturparks in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern einen atemberaubenden Anblick. Dort leben so viele wie nirgendwo sonst in Deutschland. Doch selbst hier drohen ihnen Gefahren. In freier Wildbahn leben in Deutschland derzeit rund 700 Adler-Brutpaare. Die meisten davon in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern.