Qualitative Adverse Health Experience Associated with Pesticides Usage among Farmers from Kura, Kano State, Nigeria

Abstract

Background: The battle to combat pesticide use in Kano State appears uppermost in the mind of the state government. Efforts are therefore, geared towards effective protection of the human and environmental rehabilitation. Hence, understanding the health and environmental risks posed by chemicals pesticides released into the environment is an important context for decision making in which emerging data streams may play a significant role. Over the following year, a range of studies that evaluated the potential impacts of chemical pesticides on development and growth in areas of skin irritation, hypersensitivity, reproductive abnormalities, neurological and behavioral disorders, cancer, premature hair greying, miscarriages, DNA mutation and genetic damage, and effects on biological processes can be the results of pesticide contamination in water, and food commodities. In such circumstances, it is critically important to interpret information from rapid assessments into forms that place high value on health protection and err on the side of precaution.

Objective: This study assesses the effect and health problems associated with exposure to pesticides application among farmers in Kano State, Nigeria.

Methods: A structure questionnaire was developed focusing on socio-demographic characteristics, knowledge and experience of adverse health effects related to pesticide use, details of work practices and an inventory of pesticides used on the farm. Of the 400 copies of questionnaire administered 392 copies representing 98% of the administered questionnaire was retrieved and found usable.

Results: Majority of the respondents (76.9%) were aware of the side effect of the use of pesticides with only 23.1% of the respondents not aware of the side effect of pesticide use, it can be deduced that less than half of the farmers who use insecticides are aware of its effect on the environment.

Conclusions: This results add to the body of literature that examined the effect and health problems associated with exposure to pesticides application among farmers in Kano state, Nigeria. A far better solution would be to conduct testing prior to commercial use or storage of a chemical to ensure that the information is complete and immediately available in the event of an environmental release. An example of this trend highlights the potential to develop health and environmental fate/exposure data to make rapid predictions of chemical effects upon release into the environment during an emergency. This will help demonstrate new methods to support decisions about chemicals in the environment. Although, there is a need to consider both the scientific validity of the new methods and the values applied to a given decision using this new information to ensure that the new approaches are used to improve public health and environmental protection. Additional research on biomarkers of exposure may be required to provide a comprehensive assessment of the risks of environmental pollution to farmers in Kano State.

Note: Funding Statement: This research received no specific grant from any funding agency in the public, commercial, or not-for-profit sectors. Declaration of Interests: We declare that we have no conflict of interest that could be perceived as prejudicing the impartiality of the research reported. Ethics Approval Statement: Ethical approval for the study was sought and gotten from the Institutional Review Board of the Kwara State University. Permission to carry out the research as well as written consent was also obtained from the farmers after explaining the purpose of the study to them. This was done by meeting the Kano State Farmers Association.

Keywords: Public Health and Environmental Protection, Biomarkers, Farmers, Chemical Pesticides, Potential Impacts, Genetic Damage