Evaluating exposure of chemical pesticide and its health implications with special reference to Garavisha in farmers of Eastern UP

Pesticides are substances that are used to control pests. These include herbicides, insecticides,

nematicides, fungicides, and many others. Acute effects of pesticides exposure includes

headache, stinging of eyes and skin irritation of nose and throat, skin itching, appearance of rash

and blisters on skin, dizziness, diahhorea, abdominal pain, nausea and vomiting, blurred vision,

blindness1

. Chronic effects of pesticides are neurological health effects like loss of memory,

leukaemia, brain cancer, lymphoma, breast cancer etc. Direct effect of pesticides, long term and

low dose exposure is increasingly linked to human health effects such as immune suppression,

hormone disruption, diminished intelligence, reproductive abnormalities2

. Indirect effects are the

pesticides enter those through water via drift, by runoff, leaching through the soil or may be

applied directly into surface water. Pesticide contaminated water pose great threat to aquatic

form of life which can enter into food chain and thence to humanbeings. Thus pesticides enters

the human body through ingestion, inhalation and dermally. Agriculture is the primary income

source for 70 % of rural households in India India is now second largest manufacturer of

pesticides in Asia3

. Human poisoning by pesticides has long been seen as a severe public health

problem. Whilst numerous small surveys of pesticide poisoning have been published there are no

updated estimates for pesticide poisoning from this region of India 4

.

Ayurveda describes three varieties of Visha, i.e., Jangama (animal origin), Sthavara (plant and

mineral origin) and Kritrima (artificial poison)5

. Kritima visha, synonymous of Garvisha is an

Ayurvedic concept of cumulative toxicity, or a slow-acting poison that can build up in the body

over time6

,

7Exposure to adulterants, preservatives, chemical cosmetics,personal care products,

drug toxicity, pesticide exposure can all be considered as sources of Gara visha . Signs and

symptoms produced by Gara Visha are pallor ,emaciation , weak digestive capacity , cough,

dyspnoca, fever , upword movent of Vaata , increased sleep and worry , Ascites, liver and spleen

diseases , Weakness, lethargy and difficulty in speech , inflammation, swelling, flatulence

,wasting of extrimities , body heaviness, yawning , loose stools, foul breath, impaired senses of

taste and smell, vomiting, diarrhea, discoloration , skin issues like red patches, urticaria, edema,

mental health issues like slurred speech, depression, fainting , other symptoms like indigestion,

anorexia, and excessive thirst8,9

. On categorising these symptoms it becomes clear that repeated

exposure to Gara visha seems to affect important body systems such as the immune system,

endocrine system, digestive system, nervous system, and circulatory Systems with chronic health

implications.

Factors that aggravate toxicity in the body are identified as polluted land, polluted water,

polluted soil. Currently there is paucity of evidence on the exposure to pesticide and its health

implications with special reference to Gara visha .