Agrotóxico e saúde: realidade e desafios para mudanças de práticas na agricultura.

Abstract

As the number of people on the planet continues to increase exponentially, a variety of technologies have been developed to accelerate the production of food that meets the needs of the population. Among these technologies are pesticides or pesticides, created in World War II and originally intended for use as chemical weapons. In the post-war period, pesticides shifted from chemical weapons to agricultural fortifications, also known as pesticides, pesticides, or phytosanitary products. Therefore, since its inception, its use has always existed to meet the basic food needs of the population, among them the application of pesticides in crops stands out, but the proportion of consumption of this product has been increasing, and its use on a large scale is the most important. responsible for many problems related to environmental damage and health. As the largest consumer of pesticides on the planet, Brazil accumulates a large number of environmental and public health problems due to the large and incorrect use of these substances. Based on this information, this study sought to discuss the main impacts of pesticides on the health of rural workers and the challenges for changing practices in agriculture. To this end, an integrative literature review was carried out, where searches were conducted in May 2022, in the electronic databases: Medical Literature Analysis and Retrieval System Online (MEDLINE) via PubMed, Cummulative Index to Nursing and Allied Health Literature (CINAHL), Scientific Electronic Library Online (SCIELO), Portal de Periódicos CAPES/MEC and Google Scholar. The results showed that pesticides banned in other parts of the world continue to be used in Brazil, even though there is scientific evidence of their impacts on human health. Among the most used pesticides, the results show that glyphosate; 2,4D and atrazine led the ranking. From the perspective of health impacts, studies showed that the main diseases were: depression, cancer, heart problems, hypertension, gastritis, pulmonary emphysema, Alzheimer's disease, respiratory problems, mental deficiency, congenital malformation, skin diseases and among others. In conclusion, it is highlighted how necessary it is not only to prioritize production criteria, but also to protect the health of field workers and the population as a whole. The way Brazil has progressed in relation to the use of pesticides shows the need for related actions to clarify the effects of indiscriminate use, control and inspection. In this aspect, it is the mobilization of government agencies and society, of programs that encourage other ways to produce with less aggressiveness to the health of people, workers and all consumers.