Pesticide Exposure
Other Languages: Version en espaņol
Ohio State University Extension
Objective:
To know the types and causes of pesticide exposure and how to prevent exposures.
Trainer's Note:
Discuss how personal protective equipment can protect the applicator from the
different types of exposure. The modules: Pesticide Protective Equipment and Reading Pesticide
Labels can provide additional information.
Background
There are four ways toxic materials can be taken into the body. They are: oral, dermal, inhalation, and
ocular exposures, with dermal be the most common type of exposure. These types of exposures are
explained in the chart below.
Type of Exposure |
Definition |
Cause of Exposure |
| Oral Exposure | Swallow or ingest a pesticide | • Not washing hands before eating,
drinking, smoking or chewing tobacco. • Mistaking a pesticide for food or drink. • Accidentally applying pesticides to food. • Splashing pesticide into the mouth through carelessness or accident. |
| Dermal Exposure | Having pesticide on your skin. | . Not washing hands after handling pesticides or their containers. . Splashing or spraying pesticides on unprotected skin. . Applying pesticides in windy weather. . Wearing inadequate personal protective equipment while handling pesticides or their containers. |
| Inhalation Exposure | Breathing in a pesticide. | . Prolonged contact with pesticides in closed or poorly ventilated spaces. . Breathing vapors from fumigants and other pesticides. . Breathing vapors, dust, or mist while handling pesticides without appropriate protective equipment. . Inhaling vapors immediately after a pesticide is applied. . Using the wrong respirator, or an improperly fitted respirator, or using filters, cartridges, or canisters that are "full' of chemicals, dust, etc. |
| Ocular Exposure | Pesticide gets in the eye. | . Splashing or spraying pesticides in eyes. . Applying pesticides in windy weather without eye protection. . Rubbing eyes with contaminated gloves or hands. . Pouring dust, granules or powder formulations without eye protection. |
Exposure is considered:
Acute: One-time case of pesticide exposure. For example: a spill on the body. Exposure is usually easy to determine.
Chronic: Low-level exposure over a longer period of time. Exposure is usually difficult to determine.
A combination of the two exposures can be dangerous. For example, daily exposure to a pesticide through contaminated clothing combined with an acute exposure like spilling a pesticide on your skin poses the greatest risk because the body may not be able to deal with the acute exposure.
Avoiding Exposure:
In order to avoid exposure, it is important to avoid the causes of exposure. For example, by wearing the proper eye protection you can prevent a pesticide from getting in the eyes.
To avoid exposure:
- Wear proper personal protective equipment (Refer to the module: Pesticide Personal Protective Equipment).
- If you do start to breathe pesticide mist or dust, move away from that area as quickly as possible and get into fresh air.
- Use a closed handling system.
- Maintain and clean personal protective equipment.
- Wash exposed body parts often to reduce dermal exposure.
- Read pesticide labels thoroughly (Refer to module: Reading Pesticide Labels).
- Dermal exposure to a pesticide means that it gets on the skin.
- Ocular exposure to a pesticide means that it gets in the eye.
- Oral exposure to a pesticide is swallowing or ingesting it.
- Inhalation exposure is inhaling a pesticide.
- Using improper personal protective equipment can lead to exposure to the pesticide.
Disclaimer and Reproduction Information: Information in NASD does not represent NIOSH policy. Information included in NASD appears by permission of the author and/or copyright holder. More
Reviewed for NASD: 06/2004