{"id":37880,"date":"2025-03-07T00:01:59","date_gmt":"2025-03-07T05:01:59","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/beyondpesticides.org\/dailynewsblog\/?p=37880"},"modified":"2025-03-07T17:46:45","modified_gmt":"2025-03-07T22:46:45","slug":"on-international-womens-day-elevated-pesticide-risks-to-womens-health-support-urgent-need-for-transition-to-organic","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/beyondpesticides.org\/dailynewsblog\/2025\/03\/on-international-womens-day-elevated-pesticide-risks-to-womens-health-support-urgent-need-for-transition-to-organic\/","title":{"rendered":"On International Women\u2019s Day, Pesticide Risks to Women\u2019s Health Call for Urgent Transition to Organic"},"content":{"rendered":"

(<\/span>Beyond Pesticides<\/span><\/i>, March 7, 2025) In honor of International Women\u2019s Day on Saturday, March 8, 2025, Beyond Pesticides sheds light on the <\/span>disproportionate risks<\/span><\/a> to women from toxic chemicals that are often unaccounted for and even dismissed throughout pesticide regulatory review and the underlying statutes. In a roundup of <\/span>Daily News<\/span><\/i> coverage in 2024, as well as the most recent scientific studies in 2025, on the scientific links between pesticide exposure and adverse effects in women, this article highlights the growing inequities in <\/span>pesticide threats to women\u2019s health<\/span><\/a>.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Women farmers and farmworkers are particularly excluded when assessing pesticide risks. As <\/span>previously reported<\/span><\/a> by Beyond Pesticides, a study published in <\/span>Occupational and Environmental Medicine<\/span><\/i><\/a> finds that pesticide exposure, especially during puberty, can play a role in ovarian <\/span>cancer development<\/span><\/a> among female farmers. Although there are many studies that evaluate the risk for cancers among farmers, very few scientific articles cover the risk of ovarian cancer from pesticide exposure.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Additionally, this study suggests the role of hormones in ovarian cancer prognosis and development, highlighting an association with <\/span>endocrine disruption<\/span><\/a>. Endocrine disruption can lead to numerous health problems in multiple organ systems, including hormone-related cancer development (e.g., <\/span>thyroid<\/span><\/a>, breast, ovarian, prostate, testicular), <\/span>reproductive dysfunction<\/span><\/a>, and <\/span>diabetes<\/span><\/a>\/obesity that can span generations.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

It must be noted that breast cancer, according to the <\/span>American Cancer Society<\/span><\/a>, \u201cis the most common cancer in women in the United States, except for skin cancers. It accounts for about 30% (or 1 in 3) of all new female cancers each year.\u201d Hundreds of thousands of breast cancer diagnoses occur each year. The American Cancer Society estimates for 2025 include approximately 316,950 new cases of invasive breast cancer and 42,170 deaths, as a result of breast cancer, in women. Beyond Pesticides has extensively covered the wide body of science linking pesticide exposure to breast cancer <\/em><\/span>here<\/a> and here<\/a>.\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n

In other scientific literature, a recent cross-sectional study in <\/span>Heliyon<\/span><\/i><\/a> highlights the link between sleep disorders in Thai farmers and pesticide exposure while also revealing that \u201cwomen are at a higher risk of sleep-related issues with pesticide exposure compared to males,\u201d the researchers report. (See <\/span>Daily News<\/span><\/i> coverage <\/span>here<\/span><\/a>.)<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Additional research published in <\/span>Environmental Pollution<\/span><\/i><\/a> reports the effects of the widely used insecticide <\/span>chlorpyrifos<\/span><\/a> (CPF) on <\/span>gut dysbiosis<\/span><\/a> in women, with more pronounced impacts in pregnant women. In noting intestinal imbalance in both non-pregnant and pregnant women, the study \u201cenhances our understanding of the health risks associated with CPF exposure in women, with implications for maternal and fetal health, and underscores the importance of considering physiological states such as pregnancy in toxicological research.\u201d<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Sex-specific health implications from pesticides within a multitude of studies showcase how males and females can experience different effects from exposure. These differences can be attributed to variations in hormone levels and reproductive organs that can be adversely affected by endocrine-disrupting chemicals. A recent study in <\/span>Biology of Sex Differences<\/span><\/i><\/a> regarding different clinical features between men and women states, \u201cDespite widespread recognition of these differences, females are under-represented in clinical and experimental studies.\u201d In analyzing sex and gender differences in the molecular etiology of Parkinson\u2019s disease, the authors find transcriptomic (relating to RNA, gene expression, and cell\/tissue regulation) and <\/span>epigenetic<\/span><\/a> (changes in gene expression and cell function without DNA alterations) differences in men and women. This highlights how variations between men and women in gene regulation and hormones can impact disease outcomes.\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

The study also notes the gender bias associated with pesticides that are correlated with Parkinson\u2019s diagnoses, compounded by biological differences. The authors conclude: \u201cIn addition to the gender-based likelihood of exposure, pesticides and neurotoxins interact with biological sex-related factors. Higher levels of adipose tissue in females compared with males increase the risk for pesticide absorption and later release into the bloodstream. Changes in estrogen levels during pregnancy, breastfeeding, and menopause also affect susceptibility to negative health effects of pesticide exposure. Finally, pesticide exposures may interact with genetic and epigenetic factors differently in each sex.\u201d (See additional coverage on sex-specific effects in mammals <\/span>here<\/span><\/a>.)<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

A report by the American Cancer Society, titled \u201c<\/span>Cancer Mortality Continues to Drop Despite Rising Incidence in Women; Rates of New Diagnoses Under 65 Higher in Women Than Men<\/span><\/a>,\u201d finds disparities in cancer deaths and diagnoses for not only women but by race and ethnicity. The report highlights, \u201cDespite overall declines in cancer mortality, death rates are increasing for cancers of the oral cavity, pancreas, uterine corpus, and liver (female).\u201d\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

As Beyond Pesticides <\/span>previously stated<\/span><\/a>, if we are not protecting the most vulnerable in society, we ultimately adversely affect the entire society because we are intricately linked in the web of life. Pesticide regulation, which has failed\u2014even under friendly administrations\u2014to protect human health, enhance biodiversity, and prevent climate disasters, is in need of reform in order to protect those at greatest risk, and in doing so, protect the general population.\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

The research that connects pesticides, such as <\/span>glyphosate<\/span><\/a>, <\/span>2,4-D<\/span><\/a>, and <\/span>dicamba<\/span><\/a>, to heightened risks in women and their children of cancer risk, developmental delays, neurotoxicity, infertility, negative birth outcomes, and diabetes is overwhelming. Of the subset of studies analyzed over the past year, noteworthy coverage includes:<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n