Representatives of the Sader, Semarnat, Senasica, and Cofepris integrated the Interinstitutional Group to regulate the use of pesticides
In the country, many pesticides are used that are already banned in the rest of the world, because they contaminate the air, soil, and water, in addition to affecting health.
In Mexico, pesticides are in the air, in water, and on land; also in harmful amounts in food. Many pesticides are not allowed in most European countries where laws are stricter to preserve public health and ecosystems.
Given the pressure of civil associations and the National Human Rights Commission, the Government of Mexico is in the process of removing 360 pesticides linked to 60 molecules.
The delicate situation of pesticides in Mexico has led to the intervention of the National Human Rights Commission.
On December 26, 2018, it issued recommendation 82/2018 “On the violation of human rights to food, safe water, a healthy environment, and health, for the inclusion of the general obligation of due diligence to restrict the use of pesticides of high danger, to the detriment of the general population ”.
The Government of Mexico had the obligation to comply with the recommendation by integrating an intersecretarial work table in which are the SEMARNAT, the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (SADER), the National Commission for Protection against Health Risks (COFEPRIS) and the Service National Health, Safety and Agrifood Quality (SENASICA).
Among the 360 pesticides that should be banned in the decree are Alachlor, Paraquat, Metamsodium, and Methamidophos.
What is a pesticide?
According to the International Code of Conduct for the Distribution and Use of Pesticides of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), a pesticide is:
“Any substance or mixture of substances intended to prevent, destroy or control any pest, including vectors of human or animal diseases, unwanted species of plants or animals that cause damage or interfere in any other way in production, processing, storage, transport or marketing of food, agricultural products, wood and wood products or animal feed, or that can be administered to animals to combat insects, arachnids or other pests in or on their bodies. ”
“The term includes substances intended to be used as plant growth regulators, defoliants, desiccants, agents to reduce fruit density or agents to prevent premature fruit fall, and substances applied to crops before or after the harvest to protect the product against deterioration during storage and transport ”.
Effects of pesticides
Dr. Antonio Guerrero López, who was deputy director of the IMSS Clinic 89 in Guadalajara, and the General Hospital of Zapopan, recounted the damage caused by pesticides in the population, stressing that there is no acceptable minimum, being from its origin toxic substances.
* Various types of cancer:
Especially breast cancer, pancreas, testis, ovaries, colon, rectum, bladder, lung, brain, lymphomas, leukemias, and lymphomas.
Pesticides decrease the ability of T cells to destroy tumor cells, and suppress the tumor necrosis factor-alpha that regulates immune cells. They induce mutations in the P-53 and K-ras genes that are related to colorectal and pancreatic cancer.
* Nervous system disorders:
Anxiety crisis, depression, psychosis, obsessive-compulsive disorder, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, polyneuropathies. Trigeminal neuralgia, multiple sclerosis, Ataxia.
* Alterations of the intellectual area in children:
Hyperactivity, decrease in the intellectual quotient, attention deficit disorder, learning disorders, reading comprehension difficulty, autism.
* Immune system disorders:
Hashimoto’s thyroiditis, asthma, thymus size reduction, hypothyroidism. Susceptibility to infections, rhinitis, hemolytic anemia, purpura, alterations of the intestinal flora, induces allergies such as gluten intolerance.
* Congenital malformations of all types due to their genotoxicity:
Damage to genes causes cardiac malformations, myelomeningocele, cryptorchidism, hypospadias, cleft lip, low birth weight. Pesticides easily reach the fetus and cause serious alterations.
* Endocrine and reproductive system disorders:
Abortions, menstruation disorders, endometriosis, decreased libido, early menopause, precocious puberty, ovarian atrophy, decreased fertility, metrorrhagia (abundant uterine bleeding). Toxic induced genetic alterations can be transmitted to the next generations. Toxins can pass into breast milk, and affect the baby.
* Disorders in men:
Erectile dysfunction, decreased testosterone levels, decreased fertility, sperm damage.
* Other alterations:
Pulmonary fibrosis, phototoxicity, Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s, fibromyalgia, chronic fatigue syndrome, pancreatitis,
dermatitis.
* Severe chronic diseases:
Renal impairment, liver failure, liver cirrhosis. Osteoporosis, increased cholesterol and triglycerides.
* Occult disorders:
Macular degeneration of the retina, cataract, optic nerve atrophy, conjunctivitis.
* Cardiac
disorders: Coronary heart disease, cardiomyopathy.
Source: noticiamx
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