Gateway on Pesticide Hazards and Safe Pest Management

Beyond Pesticides offers resources below to evaluate the health and ecological effects of specific chemical exposure from ACTIVE INGREDIENTS in pesticide products, as well as regulatory information and supporting scientific documents. Because various pesticide products can contain more than one active ingredient, it is important to READ the LABEL to determine chemical components.

With 192 different active ingredients and counting, it is essential to establish the connection between the use of these chemicals and their respective hazards.

View the step-by-step guide on how to search for the active ingredient(s) in pesticide products below:

1. Go to U.S. EPA's Pesticide Product and Label System and enter the product name. The generic product name may vary.
   
2. After searching, click on the chemical ingredients tab or the link for the most recent label to find Active Ingredients.
                Chemical List                                            Label List 
   
   If one selects the chemical ingredients tab, skip to Step 4 . If not, proceed to step number 3
   
   
3. To find the active ingredient(s) on the label, search for the page in the document containing the date of registration. Usually, the active ingredients section occurs within the first few pages of the label document.
   
   
4. Return to the Beyond Pesticides Gateway and search for the active ingredient name in the yellow box to the right or from the list below. 
   
   

Updates from the Daily News Blog

Study Highlights Correlation Between Pesticide Exposure and Prostate Cancer in Men in the U.S.
November 19, 2024

Glyphosate Mixtures Show Lethal and Sublethal Effects to Embryos, Highlights Regulatory Deficiencies
November 13, 2024

Review of Pesticide Residues in Human Urine, Lower Concentrations with Organic Diet
August 21, 2024

Adding to Similar Findings, Organophosphate Insecticide Linked to Depression and Suicide, Farm to Home
July 16, 2024

Presence of Weed Killer Glyphosate in Human Sperm Elevates Debate on Pesticide Threats to Human Survival 
June 4, 2024

Weed Killers Dicamba and 2,4-D Found in Pregnant Women in Midwest USA, Linked to Serious Effects
May 21, 2024

ALS Risk Elevated from Toxic Petrochemical Landscape Pesticides, Study Adds to Previous Findings
April 18, 2024

Study of Chemical Mixtures at Low Concentrations Again Finds Adverse Health Effects
April 10, 2024

Weed Killer 2,4-D’s Adverse Effect on the Liver Adds to List of Hazards from Food, Lawn, and Water Residues
February 21, 2024

Oxidative Stress Measured with Biomarkers Links Pesticide Exposure to Cancer
January 24, 2024

ALL RELATED STORIES >>

2,4-D

General Information

• Fact Sheet: 2-4-D.pdf
• Product Names:

  Crossbow (Dow), formulated with Triclopyr, Petroleum distillates
  GlyMIX MT (Dow), formulated with Glyphosate
  Grazon P+D (Dow)
  Pathway (Dow)
  Aqua-Kleen (Nufarm America)
  Barrage (Helena Chemical)
  Malerbane (Aventis)
  Weedone (Nufarm America)
  Weedtrine- II (Nufarm America)

• Chemical Class: Phenoxy herbicide
• Uses: Registered for field, fruit, and vegetable crops, turf, lawns, rights-of-way, aquatic sites, forestry applications, post-emergence broadleaf weeds, plant growth regulator in citrus
• Alternatives: Organic agriculture,  Organic Lawn care
• Beyond Pesticides rating: Toxic

Health and Environmental Effects

• Cancer: Yes (4)
• Endocrine Disruption: Probable (5)
• Reproductive Effects: Yes (6)
• Neurotoxicity: Yes (7)
• Kidney/Liver Damage: Yes (7)
• Sensitizer/ Irritant: Yes (4)
• Birth/Developmental: Yes (4)
• Detected in Groundwater: Yes (4)
• Potential Leacher: Yes (7)
• Toxic to Birds: Yes (4)
• Toxic to Fish/Aquatic Organisms: Yes (8)
• Toxic to Bees: Yes (4)

Residential Uses as Found in the ManageSafe™ Database

• Dandelions
• Clover
• Ground Ivy
• Plantains
• Japanese Knotweed

Additional Information

• Regulatory Status:
  • Beyond Pesticides' comments on Preliminary Ecological Risk Assessment for Registration review (7/2017)
  • EPA Registration Review (2017)
  • Beyond Pestides' comments on registration of Enlist Duo (12/2016)
  • Registration of Enlist Duo (2014)
  • EPA Reregistration Eligibility Document (RED) signed (6/2005)
  • Beyond Pesticides' RED comments (8/2004)
• Supporting information:
  • Daily News Blog entries (Beyond Pesticides)
  • Asthma, Children and Pesticides (Beyond Pesticides)
  • Children & Lawn Chemicals Don't Mix (Beyond Pesticides)
  • The Safer Choice (Beyond Pesticides)
  • NCAP 2,4-D Factsheet (Northwest Coalition for Alternatives to Pesticides)
  • PAN Pesticides Database: 2,4-D (Pesticide Action Network)
• Studies:
  • IARC Monographs evaluate DDT, lindane, and 2,4-D. (2015) 
  • 2,4-Dichlorophenoxyacetic acid (2,4-D)-resistant crops and the potential for evolution of 2,4-D-resistant weeds. Egan JF, Maxwell BD, Mortensen DA, et al. 2011. Proc Natl Acad Sci. 108(11): E37.
  • Cancer and pesticides: an overview and some results of the Italian multicenter case-control study on hematolymphopoietic malignancies
    Miligi, L., et al. 2006. Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences.
  • Breast cancer risk in Hispanic agricultural workers in California
    Mills, P.K. and Yang, R. 2005. International Journal of Occupational and Environmental Health.
  • Lymphohematopoietic cancers in the United Farm Workers of America (UFW), 1988-2001.  Mills PK, Yang R, Riordan D. 2005. Cancer Causes Control.
  • Herbicide exposure and the risk of transitional cell carcinoma of the urinary bladder in Scottish terriers, Glickman, et. al. 2004. Journal of the American Medical Association.
  • Biomarker correlations of urinary 2,4-D levels in foresters: genomic instability and encodrine disruption. Garry, V.F., et al. 2001. Environ Health Pers.
  • A Case–Control Study of Non-Hodgkin Lymphoma and Exposure to Pesticides Journal of the American Cancer Society, 1999.
  • Pesticides in Household Dust and Soil: Exposure Pathways for Children of Agricultural Families, Simcox, et. al. 1995.Environmental Health Perspectives.
  • Pesticides and non-Hodgkin's lymphoma. Zahm SH and Blair A. 1992. Cancer Res.
  • A case-control study of non-Hodgkin's lymphoma and the herbicide 2,4-dichlorophenoxyacetic acid (2,4-D) in eastern Nebraska.. Zahm, S., et al. 1990. Epidemiology 1(5):349-356
  • A longitudinal study of atrazine and 2,4-D exposure and oxidative stress markers among iowa corn farmers.. Lerro CC, Beane Freeman LE, Portengen L, Kang D, et al. 2017. Environ Mol Mutagen. 58(1):30-38.
  • Agricultural exposures and gastric cancer risk in Hispanic farm workers in California. Mills, P.K., and Yang, R.C. 2007. Environ Res 104(2):282-289.
  • Agricultural herbicide use and a risk of lymphoma and soft-tissue sarcoma.. Hoar, S., et al. 1986. Journal of the American Medical Association 259(9): 1141-1147
  • Biomonitoring data for 2,4-dichlorophenoxyacetic acid in the United States and Canada: interpretation in a public health risk assessment context using Biomonitoring Equivalents. Aylward LL et al. 2010. Environ Health Perspect. 118(2):177-81
  • Autism: Transient in utero hypothyroxinemia related to maternal flavonoid ingestion during pregnancy and to other environmental antithyroid agents. Román, G, C. 2007. Journal of the Neurological Sciences; 262(1-2), pp 15-26
  • Birth Malformations and Other Adverse Perinatal Outcomes in Four U.S. Wheat-Producing States.. Schreinemachers, D. 2003. Environmental Health Perspectives, 111(9).
  • Cancer and pesticides: an overview and some results of the Italian multicenter case-control study on hematolymphopoietic malignancies. Miligi, L., et al. 2006. Ann N Y Acad Sci 1076:366-377
  • Developmental Toxicity of a Commercial Herbicide Mixture in Mice: I. Effects on Embryo Implantation and Litter Size. Cavieres, M., et al. 2002. Environ Health Perspect 110:1081-1085
  • Pesticides applied to crops and amyotrophic lateral sclerosis risk in the U.S. Andrew, A., Zhou, J., Gui, J., Harrison, A., Shi, X., Li, M., Guetti, B., Nathan, R., Tischbein, M., Pioro, E.P. and Stommel, E. NeuroToxicology, 87, pp.128-135.
  • Association between increasing agricultural use of 2, 4-D and population biomarkers of exposure: findings from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey, 2001–2014.. Freisthler, M.S., Robbins, C.R., Benbrook, C.M., Young, H.A., Haas, D.M., Winchester, P.D. and Perry, M.J. Environmental Health, 21(1), pp.1-11.
  • Association between increasing agricultural use of 2,4-D and population biomarkers of exposure: findings from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey, 2001–2014. Freisthler, M.S., Robbins, C.R., Benbrook, C.M., Young, H.A., Haas, D.M., Winchester, P.D. and Perry, M.J. Environmental Health, 21(1), pp.1-11.
  • Amine Volatilization from Herbicide Salts: Implications for Herbicide Formulations and Atmospheric Chemistry. Sharkey, S.M., Hartig, A.M., Dang, A.J., Chatterjee, A., Williams, B.J. and Parker, K.M., 2022. Environmental Science & Technology.
  • Assessment of the impact of glyphosate and 2,4-D herbicides on the kidney injury and transcriptome changes in obese mice fed a Western diet.. Romualdo, G.R., de Souza, J.L.H., Valente, L.C. and Barbisan, L.F., 2023. Toxicology Letters, 385, pp.1-11.
  • Dicamba and 2,4-D in the Urine of Pregnant Women in the Midwest: Comparison of Two Cohorts (2010–2012 vs. 2020–2022). Daggy, J.K. et al. (2024) Dicamba and 2,4-D in the urine of pregnant women in the Midwest: Comparison of two cohorts (2010–2012 vs. 2020–2022), Agrochemicals. Available at: https://www.mdpi.com/2813-3145/3/1/5.
  • A Comprehensive Review on Pesticide Residues in Human Urine. Hakme, E., Poulsen, M. and Lassen, A. (2024) A Comprehensive Review on Pesticide Residues in Human Urine, Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry. Available at: https://pubs.acs.org/doi/abs/10.1021/acs.jafc.4c02705.
  • Exposures of 129 Preschool Children to Organochlorines, Organophosphates, Pyrethroids, and Acid Herbicides at Their Homes and Daycares in North Carolina. Morgan, M.K., Wilson, N.K. and Chuang, J.C. (2014) Exposures of 129 Preschool Children to Organochlorines, Organophosphates, Pyrethroids, and Acid Herbicides at Their Homes and Daycares in North Carolina, International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health. Available at: https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC4025031/.
  • Respiratory and allergic outcomes among 5-year-old children exposed to pesticides. Islam, J.Y. et al. (2023) Respiratory and allergic outcomes among 5-year-old children exposed to pesticides, Thorax. Available at: https://thorax.bmj.com/content/78/1/41.abstract.
  • Glyphosate formulations cause mortality and diverse sublethal defects during embryonic development of the amphibian Xenopus laevis. Flach, H. et al. (2024) Glyphosate formulations cause mortality and diverse sublethal defects during embryonic development of the amphibian Xenopus laevis, Chemosphere. Available at: https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0045653524025244.
  • Common use herbicides increase wetland greenhouse gas emissions. Cornish, C.M. et al. (2024) Common use herbicides increase wetland greenhouse gas emissions, Science of The Total Environment. Available at: https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0048969724030286.
  • Pesticides and prostate cancer incidence and mortality: An environment-wide association study. Soerensen, S. et al. (2024) Pesticides and prostate cancer incidence and mortality: An environment-wide association study, Cancer. Available at: https://acsjournals.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/cncr.35572.