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. 2014 Mar;57(3):323-37.
doi: 10.1002/ajim.22284. Epub 2013 Nov 25.

Pesticide exposures to migrant farmworkers in Eastern NC: detection of metabolites in farmworker urine associated with housing violations and camp characteristics

J H Raymer  1 , W B Studabaker, M Gardner, J Talton, S A Quandt, H Chen, L C Michael, M McCombs, T A Arcury
Affiliations

Pesticide exposures to migrant farmworkers in Eastern NC: detection of metabolites in farmworker urine associated with housing violations and camp characteristics

J H Raymer et al. Am J Ind Med. 2014 Mar.

Abstract

Background: The purpose of this paper is to present and evaluate descriptively bivariate associations between urinary metabolites of pesticides and herbicides and migrant camp conditions, violations, and personal worker behaviors at home for farmworkers who do not apply pesticides.

Methods: We studied 183 migrant farmworker camps in eastern North Carolina in 2010. Data and urine samples were collected from 371 men. Predictor measures included violations in six domains of housing regulations and nonviolation characteristics and personal behaviors that might impact urinary metabolites.

Results: Cockroaches and bathroom violations were predictive of increased exposure to pyrethroids and cyfluthrin/chlorpyrifos, respectively. Changing and storing clothing and shoes in sleeping rooms increased the number of detects for the diazinon metabolite.

Conclusions: Farmworkers had exposures to multiple chemicals. No single housing domain was identified as critical to mitigating housing-related exposure; specific attention should be paid to changing and storing soiled clothing in sleeping rooms, and insect infestations.

Keywords: housing impact on exposure; housing violations; migrant farmworker housing; migrant worker exposure; urinary pesticide metabolites.

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Conflict of interest statement

Conflict of Interest Statement: The authors have no conflicts of interest to declare.

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