Description
Endosulfan is a highly persistent, bioaccumulative, organochlorine insecticide used on fruits, vegetables, cotton, coffee, tea, tobacco, grains and nuts. It is also used as a wood preservative.
All residential uses of endosulfan were phased out in 2000.
In 2002, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) stopped permitting use of endosulfan on several food crops (beans, peas, spinach and grapes) due to concerns that young children were ingesting unsafe residue levels.
Health Effects
Immediate Health Effects
- If SWALLOWED, endosulfan is Very Highly Toxic
- If ABSORBED THROUGH SKIN, endosulfan is Very Highly Toxic
- If INHALED (SNIFFED OR BREATHED IN), endosulfan is Very Highly Toxic
Longterm or Delayed Health Effects
- This chemical may cause cancer. It is considered a Possible Carcinogen by the World Health Organization, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, or another agency.
- Neurotoxin = Can harm brain and central nervous system
- Suspected Endocrine Disruptor = May interfere with, mimic or block hormones
Other
- Although reproductive or developmental effects are unlikely at doses expected to be encountered by people, these effects have been observed in the laboratory. Specifically, damage to male and female reproductive organs have been observed in laboratory animals (damaged seminiferous tubules and lowered testes weights in male rats), low birth weight and length, and abnormalities in bone development in the offspring of dosed pregnant animals.
- Neurobehavioral effects observed in laboratory animals, such as impaired learning and memory.
- Immune function suppression has been observed in animals exposed to endosulfan.
- Cardiovascular and blood effects observed in animals, including anemia (lowered red blood cell and hemoglobin count) and blood vessel aneurysms.
- The kidney, testes, and possibly liver are affected in laboratory animals exposed to endosulfan over the long term.
- Poisoning results in neurotoxic effects such as hyperactivity, muscle contractions, involuntary muscle movements, sensitivity to noise and light, incoordination, seizures, and convulsions. These clinical signs have been observed in humans accidentally exposed to endosulfan, and in animal studies. Endosulfan is also an eye irritant.
How Exposures Occur
Food
- Food is the primary means of exposure to endosulfan. Endosulfan accumulates in fat. The highest concentrations can be found in the fatty tissue of meat and in full-fat dairy products.
Residues may also be present on produce. In the Total Diet Study, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration found the highest endosulfan residues on green peppers, green beans, pears, peaches, apples, grapes, strawberries, spinach, raisins, and squash. Some baby foods also contained endosulfan.
Water
- Well water and public water supplies are not likely sources of exposure to endosulfan, although endosulfan may contaminate drinking water sources from agricultural run-off. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency monitors the level of endosulfan in lakes and streams, but currently does not regulate endosulfan in drinking water.
Tobacco
- Endosulfan is used on tobacco plants. Smoking or chewing tobacco can result in exposure to pesticide residues.
Soil
- The most likely exposure to endosulfan for people living near hazardous waste sites is through contact with soils containing it. Endosulfan or its breakdown product, endosulfan sulfate, has been identified at 17 of 1,177 sites identified by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) on its National Priorities List (NPL). However, we do not know how many of the 1,177 NPL sites have been evaluated for endosulfan or endosulfan sulfate.
Pesticide Application and Drift
- Children can inhale endosulfan when spray drifts from neighboring farms and orchards.
Occupational
- Children of farm workers and farm pesticide applicators are exposed to higher amounts of endosulfan and other pesticides, which can enter the home on clothing, shoes, etc.
Significant Statistics
In April 2000, Environmental Working Group reported that 5 out of 10 bags of Washington State apples sampled for organochlorine pesticides contained endosulfan residues.
A Few Bad Apples. Environmental Working Group, April 2000.http://www.ewg.org/reports/fewbadapples/pressrelease.html
Low levels of endosulfan have been reported in tree bark in remote regions of the world including the Orinoco rain forest of Venezuela. The results of this study are indicative of the persistent nature of this compound, as well as its widespread use.
Agricultural use of endosulfan poses a potential although small source of human dietary exposure to hexachlorobenzene and pentachlorobenzene, considered by the U.S. EPA to be possible human carcinogens.
Endosulfan: Revised HED Preliminary Human Health Risk Assessment. U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, January 31, 2001.http://www.epa.gov/oppsrrd1/reregistration/endosulfan/endosulfan_revisedrisk.PDF
Currently, 94 products containing endosulfan are registered by the EPA for use in the U.S.
Endosulfan RED Facts. U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Office of Prevention, Pesticides and Toxic Substances, November 2002. http://www.epa.gov/oppsrrd1/REDs/factsheets/endosulfan_fs.htm
Solutions
How to detect endosulfan
How to minimize exposure to endosulfan
- Eat a balanced diet, with plenty of fruits and vegetables and a moderate level of low-fat meats and dairy products.
Wash non-organic fruits and vegetables well and peel them when possible.
Choose certified organic foods, when possible, as they have not been treated with pesticides. A good place to start is with 10 Fruits and Vegetables to Buy Organic.
- Reduce dietary fat to reduce exposure to persistent pollutants like endosulfan. Remove fat from meat as well as skin on chicken and fish, before cooking. Use cooking methods such as broiling, which allows fat to drip away from the food. Deep frying may seal in toxins.
- Filter your water. For more information, see Safe Drinking Water: Filtration.
Alternatives
For More information
Books, articles, factsheets and reports
Do You Know What You're Eating? An Analysis of U.S. Government Data on Pesticide Residues in Foods. Consumers Union, February 1999.
http://www.consumersunion.org/food/do_you_know2.htm
Update: Pesticides in Children's Foods - An Analysis of 1998 USDA PDP Data on Pesticide Residues. Consumers Union, May 2000.
http://www.consumersunion.org/food/pdpdc600.htm
Nowhere to Hide: Persistent Toxic Chemicals in the U.S. Food Supply. Pesticide Action Network North America, March 2001.
http://www.panna.org/resources/documents/nowhereToHideAvail.dv.html
Other government agencies
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
Office of Pesticide Programs
Ariel Rios Building
1200 Pennsylvania Ave. NW
Washington, DC 20460
202-260-2090
http://www.epa.gov/pesticides/
U.S. Food and Drug Administration
Center for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition
5100 Paint Branch Parkway
College Park, MD 20740-3835
888-463-6332
http://www.cfsan.fda.gov
Nonprofit organizations
Pesticide Action Network North America
49 Powell St., Suite 500
San Francisco, CA 94102
415-981-1771
http://www.panna.org
Northwest Coalition for Alternatives to Pesticides
P.O.Box 1393
Eugene, OR 97440
541-344-5044
http://www.pesticide.org/
Other websites
Our Stolen Future
http://www.ourstolenfuture.org
E.Hormone
http://e.hormone.tulane.edu/
Healthy Babies, Healthy Milk
http://www.nrdc.org/breastmilk/default.asp
Environmental Defense Chemical Scorecard
http://www.scorecard.org
PAN Pesticides Database
http://www.pesticideinfo.org
Pesticide Action Network Pesticide Advisor
http://www.panna.org/resources/advisor.dv.html
Other
In non-target wildlife, endosulfan has caused reproductive and developmental effects in birds, fish and mammals.
(Source: Reregistration Eligibility Decision for Endosulfan. U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Office of Prevention, Pesticides and Toxic Substances, November 2002.)
http://www.epa.gov/oppsrrd1/REDs/endosulfan_red.pdf
Endosulfan is harmful to wildlife. It is highly toxic to fish and birds, and moderately toxic to bees.
(Source: Pesticide Information Profile: Endosulfan. Extension Toxicology Network (EXTOXNET), Revised June 1996.)
http://ace.ace.orst.edu/info/extoxnet/pips/endosulf.htm
