Journal of Preventive Medicine and Public Health

Original Article

Relationship Between Pesticide Exposure Factors and Health Symptoms Among Chili Farmers in Northeast Thailand: Ratchadaporn Pengpan, Kulthida Y. Kopolrat, Sribud Srichaijaroonpong, Nutta Taneepanichskul, Patiwat Yasaka, Ratanee Kammoolkon; J Prev Med Public Health. 2024;57(1):73-82. Published online December 20, 2023; DOI: https://doi.org/10.3961/jpmph.23.353

12,358 View
481 Download
10 Web of Science
12 Crossref

Objectives
The unsafe use of pesticides in agriculture represents a major hazard to human health. This study was conducted to investigate the association between pesticide exposure and health symptoms among chili farmers in northeast Thailand.
Methods
This cross-sectional analytic study included 141 chili farmers in Sakon Nakhon Province, in northeast Thailand. Data regarding health symptoms were gathered using a self-report questionnaire. A medical technician tested blood cholinesterase activity using an erythrocyte method, and an occupational medicine specialist at Ramathibodi Hospital in Bangkok, Thailand reviewed the results. Associations between personal characteristics, pesticide exposure factors, and health symptoms were analyzed using multiple logistic regression.
Results
Of the 141 chili farmers studied, 66.7% experienced pesticide poisoning, as indicated by below-normal cholinesterase levels. Fatigue was the most frequently reported symptom associated with pesticide exposure, affecting 37.6% of participants. This was followed by nausea and vomiting (31.9%), dizziness (14.9%), and dry throat (14.9%). Multivariate logistic regression analysis revealed that several factors were significantly associated with adverse symptoms: amount of work experience, volume of pesticides used, use of chemical pesticides, use of leaking containers during spraying, direct pesticide exposure while working, contact with pesticide-soaked clothing, consumption of food and drinks in the fields, and blood cholinesterase level indicating risk.
Conclusions
This study suggests potential health risks for chili farmers stemming from exposure to and contamination by pesticides used in agricultural practices. To mitigate these risks, it is essential to supply personal protective equipment and to implement educational programs aimed at improving protective behaviors among farmers.

Summary

Key Message
This study aimed to demonstrate the impact of pesticide exposure on health symptoms. In a cross-sectional study, the effects of pesticide exposure on acetylcholinesterase erythrocyte activity in blood during agricultural practices were examined as potential health risks for chili farmers. It is crucial to provide personal protective equipment and to implement educational initiatives targeted at encouraging farmers to adopt more protective behaviors to reduce these risks.

Citations

Citations to this article as recorded by

Health risk assessment of glyphosate exposure among rubber farmers in Northeast Thailand
Piyapong Chaiyasarn, Kulthida Y. Kopolrat, Patiwat Yasaka, Sribud Srichaijaroonpong, Birabongse Hardthakwong, Pathanan Suwannaboon, Chavanakorn Krueakaew, Ratanee Kammoolkon
Journal of Environmental Exposure Assessment.2026;[Epub] CrossRef
Dual-Resource constrained flexible job-shop scheduling with ergonomic considerations in conventional and human-robot systems using an enhanced NSGA-II with teaching-learning effect
Shaban Usman, Tianrun Ye, Haotian Xue, Lei Liu, Weiwei Qin, Ping Zhang, Ailong Yuan, Chueh Ting, Yanli Gong, Chunming Gao
Robotics and Computer-Integrated Manufacturing.2026; 101: 103272. CrossRef
Widespread Use of Banned Pesticides and Weak Regulatory Enforcement: Environmental and Health Implications Among Farmers in Gombe State, Nigeria
Mohammad Bashir Sulaiman, Babangida Hammani, Abdullahi Muhammad Gimba, Oluyinka Omoyeni Akinlotan, Aliyu Tijjani Fadawa, Umar Musa Kwami, Taibatu Idris Umar, Amina Muhammad Bello
Journal of Agromedicine.2026; 31(4): 755. CrossRef
Bridging the Knowledge–Behavior Gap: A Cross-Sectional Study on Food Safety and Pesticide Exposure Among Migrant Workers in Chiang Mai
Nan Ei Moh Moh Kyi, Tipsuda Pintakham, Muhammad Samar, Muhammad Naeem Rashid, Surat Hongsibsong, Kanokwan Kulprachakarn, Anurak Wongta
International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health.2026; 23(9): 1206. CrossRef
Developmental inequity and the impact of pesticide exposure on gut and brain health in developing nations – a Brazilian perspective
Jessica Gama, Bianca Cruz Neves, Antonio Pereira
Humanities and Social Sciences Communications.2025;[Epub] CrossRef
Fatigability and Long-Term Pesticide Exposure in Organic and Conventional Farmers
Talita Regina Coelho, Maurício Bedim dos Santos, Hugo M. Pereira, Ana Tereza Bittencourt Guimarães
Translational Journal of the American College of Sports Medicine.2025;[Epub] CrossRef
Occupational health risk of farmers: A qualitative study with the agriculture society of trinidad and tobago and the ministry of agriculture, land and fisheries
Barry Parasram, Avishek Choudhury, Olutosin Ademola Otekunrin
PLOS One.2025; 20(7): e0327283. CrossRef
Health Literacy and Associated Factors Influencing Pesticide Protective Behaviors Among Cassava Farmers in an Eastern Thailand Province: A Cross-Sectional Study
Chaninan Praserttai, Phannathat Tanthanapanyakorn, Nonlapan Khantikulanon, Sootthikarn Mungkhunthod, Kunlaphatcha Maoon
Pacific Rim International Journal of Nursing Research.2025; 29(4): 892. CrossRef
Pesticide exposure and health risk assessment in Durian farmers from Southern of Thailand
Pattama Senthong, Sivasit Wittayasilp
International Archives of Occupational and Environmental Health.2025; 98(9-10): 821. CrossRef
Pesticide poisoning as an occupational and environmentally determined disease: modern approaches to diagnosis in accordance with the recommendations of the international labour organization (part I)
A.V. Basanets, M.G. Prodanchuk, N.V. Kurdil, Т.О. Yastrub
Ukrainian Journal of Modern Problems of Toxicology.2025; 99(2): 28. CrossRef
Emerging diseases: trend research and omics-based analysis reveals mechanisms of endophytes modulate Chilli plant resilience
Wiwiek Harsonowati, Evy Latifah, Arinal Haq Izzawati Nurrahma, Jati Purwani, Rashid Iqbal, Javid Ahmad Parray, Ashish D. Patel
Symbiosis.2024; 93(3): 241. CrossRef
An Analysis of Occupational Hazards Based on the Physical Ergonomics Dimension to Improve the Occupational Health of Agricultural Workers: The Case in Mayo Valley, Mexico
Víctor Manuel Ramos-García, Josué Aarón López-Leyva, Ana Paola Balderrama-Carmona, Iván Ochoa-Vázquez, Juan José García-Ochoa, Manuel de Jesús Espinoza-Espino
Safety.2024; 10(3): 61. CrossRef

Special Article

Food Ingestion Factors of the Korean Exposure Factors Handbook: Jae-Yeon Jang, Soo-Nam Jo, Sun-Ja Kim, Hyung-Nam Myung, Cho-Il Kim; J Prev Med Public Health. 2014;47(1):18-26. Published online January 29, 2014; DOI: https://doi.org/10.3961/jpmph.2014.47.1.18

14,003 View
79 Download
5 Crossref

Abstract PDF

The purpose of this study was to establish food ingestion factors needed to assess exposure to contaminants through food ingestion. The study reclassified the raw data of the Korean National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey in 2001 into 12 subcategories including grain products, meat products, fish and shellfish, and vegetables for international comparability of exposure evaluation. The criteria for food intake calculation were unified according to the characteristics of food groups, and recommended values for food ingestion factors were calculated through moisture correction and recategorization of cooked, processed, and mixed foods for each group. The average intake rate for grain and grain products was 6.25 g/kg-d per capita and the men's intake rate was approximately 8% higher than that of the women. The average intake rate of meat and meat products was 1.62 g/kg-d per capita and the men's intake rate was 30% higher than that of the women, on average. The average intake rate of fish and shellfish was 1.53 g/kg-d per capita, and the age groups of 1 to 2 and 3 to 6 recorded higher capita intake rates than other age groups, 2.62 g/kg-d and 2.25 g/kg-d, respectively. The average intake rate of vegetables was 6.47 g/kg-d per capita, with the age group of 1 to 2 recording the highest per capita intake rate of 9.79 g/kg-d and that of 13 to 19 recording the lowest mean. The study also offers recommended values for food ingestion factors of other food groups by gender, age, and region. The food ingestion exposure factors will need future updates in consideration of ongoing changes in food consumption behavior.

Summary

Citations

Citations to this article as recorded by

Updated general exposure factors for risk assessment in the Korean population
Hyojung Yoon, Jungkwan Seo, Sun-Kyoung Yoo, Pil-Je Kim, Jinhyeon Park, Youngtae Choe, Wonho Yang
Journal of Exposure Science & Environmental Epidemiology.2023; 33(6): 1013. CrossRef
Heavy metal accumulation in and food safety of shark meat from Jeju island, Republic of Korea
Sang Wha Kim, Se Jin Han, Yonggab Kim, Jin Woo Jun, Sib Sankar Giri, Cheng Chi, Saekil Yun, Hyoun Joong Kim, Sang Guen Kim, Jeong Woo Kang, Jun Kwon, Woo Taek Oh, Jehyun Cha, Seunghee Han, Byeong Chun Lee, Taesung Park, Byung Yeop Kim, Se Chang Park, Yi H
PLOS ONE.2019; 14(3): e0212410. CrossRef
Formulae Evaluation for Estimating Body Surface Area of Korean Children
Lito M AMIT, Young-Woong SONG
Journal of UOEH.2018; 40(1): 19. CrossRef
The association of total blood mercury levels and overweight among Korean adolescents: analysis of the Korean National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (KNHANES) 2010–2013
Yi-Yeon Shin, In-Kyung Ryu, Mi-Jung Park, Shin-Hye Kim
Korean Journal of Pediatrics.2018; 61(4): 121. CrossRef
Exploring Global Exposure Factors Resources for Use in Consumer Exposure Assessments
Rosemary Zaleski, Peter Egeghy, Pertti Hakkinen
International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health.2016; 13(7): 744. CrossRef

First
Prev
Page of 1
Next
Last

Search