Efeitos clínicos da exposição a pesticidas e a importância da informação para saúde rural

Abstract

Agriculture, essential for food production and the development of societies, has evolved with techniques to increase soil productivity; however, the expropriation of lands for irrigable areas, without socio-environmental responsibility and democracy, creates scenarios of vulnerability and health risks. In Brazil, inequality in land distribution and lack of support for rural workers compromise the proposal of an equitable green revolution. In the Northeast of Brazil, irrigation projects, such as the Lower Açu Irrigation District (DIBA), have modernized agriculture, but resulted in social exclusion and labor exploitation. In this context, the main objective of this study is to correlate the clinical symptoms observed with the inadequate use or chronic exposure to pesticides in the rural environment, highlighting the urgent need for precise research on the harmful mechanisms of prolonged exposure in the DIBA region. This literature review follows a systematic process to identify scientific evidence on the clinical effects of pesticides, encompassing searches on platforms such as PUBMED and EMBRAPA, resulting in 249 articles analyzed with specific criteria, of which 30 were selected and had their information collected. The review revealed 41 symptoms/health effects associated with pesticides, with occupational exposure being the most prevalent (175 times), while computational analysis generated a network graph with 101 nodes, elucidating the correlation between pesticides, diseases, and types of exposure. The complexity of adverse health effects from pesticide exposure highlights the urgency of integrated policies and multidisciplinary approaches to ensure sustainable agricultural development and protect public health. It is fundamental that pesticide application is carried out with agronomic technical guidance, considering specific care and protection measures to minimize health impacts in rural areas, emphasizing the importance of research in the Northeast region, investments in education, and robust methods of monitoring the risks associated with pesticide exposure.