# Exposure to combination of pesticides increases childhood cancer risk – study

Study on cancer data in US agricultural heartland finds children more at risk than if exposed to just one pesticide

## Expose to multiple pesticides significantly increases the risk of childhood cancers

Exposure to multiple pesticides significantly increases the risk of childhood cancers compared with exposures to just one pesticide, , raising new fears that children are more at risk to the substances’ harmful effects than previously thought.

The study’s authors say they are the first to look at the link between exposures to multiple widely used pesticides and the most common childhood cancers. Most research considers pesticides’ toxicity on an individual basis, and the substances are regulated as if exposures occur in isolation from one another.

But people are exposed to multiple pesticides in water, produce, meat, fish, and processed foods. In agricultural communities, children can be even further exposed to multiple pesticides in water, air, and dust, and in the home.



## Exposure to a 10% mixture increased brain cancer rates by 36%, leukemia rates by 23%, and overall pediatric cancer rates by 30% in Nebraska

Exposure to a 10% mixture increased brain cancer rates by 36%, leukemia rates by 23%, and overall pediatric cancer rates by 30% in Nebraska, the study found. The cancers are among the most common in the state, and may help explain their prevalence, said Jabeen Taiba, a lead author with the University of Nebraska medical center.

“As individuals, we aren’t just exposed to one chemical, but a mixture, so if you are just studying one chemical alone, then you are not able to capture the exposures – it gives you limited information,” Taiba told the Guardian.

The study investigated cancer data from 2,500 pediatric cases across 22 years in Nebraska, which is in the nation’s agricultural heartland. It holds the US’s second highest childhood cancer rates, in part due to widespread use of multiple pesticides.

Of the 32 pesticides researchers examined, the most potent mixes included herbicides such as , , and  – controversial products that are each sprayed on tens of millions of acres of cropland nationally.

The pesticides have drawn intense scrutiny for their toxicity, and are prohibited in many other countries, but US regulators have resisted calls for bans.  are especially dangerous for children because they are smaller than adults and their bodies are still developing, so health risks can be considerable at a smaller exposure level.

The greatest risk is for farm workers and people living in agricultural communities, but children’s exposure in food presents an underestimated danger, Taiba said.

“We are exposed to multiple pesticides through water and food, so this is not just a problem for the agricultural communities,” she said.



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## People should buy organic foods when possible

Pesticide pollution of water sources in some communities is also common, and people could research levels in their water, then buy water filtration systems that are effective at removing the substances. Reverse osmosis and granular activated-carbon systems are considered the best.

In agricultural communities, adults who work around pesticides should leave their work clothes and shoes outdoors, Taiba said. Previous research has found pesticides tracked or brought into the home are a significant exposure source for children.

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