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A new US study links organophosphorous pesticides to obesity and type 2 diabetes, said the Biological
Farmers of Australia (BFA).
The peer-reviewed study, published in Environmental Health Perspectives, a journal by the US National
Institute of Environmental Health Sciences, investigated the effect of pre & neonatal exposure to
organophosphates on hepatic cell signalling - an important metabolic development process in fetuses.
The findings of the study point out the need to explore the possibility that developmental exposure to
common chemical contaminants contributes to the explosive worldwide increase in diabetes and obesity.
The study comes on the heels of research drawing links between pesticides, ADHD and cancer, reported
by BFA last week. The US President's Cancer Panel in consultation with 45 experts are now calling for
the government to do everything within its power to remove carcinogens and other toxins from food, air
and water.
BFA Standards Convenor, Dr Andrew Monk, believes these studies are further proof of the danger
surrounding pesticide exposure and the benefits of organics.
“What this continues to tell us is what in fact is common sense - that there remain many unknowns and
doubts about synthetic agents and products, but also now a growing pool of evidence suggesting we
should be concerned about the consumption of pesticide residues,” he said.
“The cocktail effect of unknown impacts of mixtures of synthetic chemicals is another swampland of
concern. Most of these permutations of mixtures have never been tested. This underlies the nature of
reductive science in its approach to testing the “safety” of individual new chemistries that may be created
and put into our food supply. This remains one of the many areas of unknowns.”
Dr Monk believes that organic food offers people the choice to minimise the harm caused by these
chemicals and pesticides.
“It comes down to consumers making a choice as to whether they wish to actively be part of a 50-year
food experiment, or whether they value their health and safety sufficiently to invest in foods which are
becoming confirmed as better for them. Certified organic produce gives them that choice,” he said.
One of Australia’s leading Accredited Nutritionists, Nicole Senior believes that the study highlights the
need for further research into the theory of “fetal origins of disease” which suggests that conditions inutero can create an “imprint” for disease later in life.
“While this study was conducted in rats and not immediately applicable to humans, it does suggest a
possible mechanism whereby an environmental toxin could influence metabolic health, and points to
potential risk that needs further investigation,” Ms Senior said.
But in the meantime she suggests that organic foods are a good way to promote general health and wellbeing.
“Organic foods are a good choice for promoting our own health, the health of our children and the health
of the environment,” she said

This article was published in the winter 2010 Issue of Australian Certified Organic Magazine.