Effects of pesticides on farmers’ health in Tu Ky district, Hai Duong province, Vietnam

Abstract The survey on 300 farming households in Tu Ky district, Hai Duong province, Vietnam show that their knowledge about plant protection drugs is still very limited. Farmers do not understand the meaning of the colors and the contours on the packaging. The treatment of excess drugs and hygiene activities after pesticide application show that farmers' awareness is not high, thereby leading to environmental pollution and reduction in the physical health of farmers. The results about the effects of pesticides and herbicides on the health of farmers in Tu Ky district show that farmers often suffer from diseases such as eyes, ears, nose, and throat diseases, skin diseases, and gastrointestinal disorders. The proportion of farmers suffering from common diseases in communes specializing in vegetable production is higher than that of communes specializing in rice production. In particular, the proportions of deaths from cancer in Hung Dao and Ngoc Ky communes were 48.5% and 43.6%, respectively, much higher than that of An Thanh Commune (7.9%). In addition to the number of farmers and the high incidence of cancer deaths in the vegetable production area is compared to those in rice production area. COI of households at Hung Dao is 7,493 thousand VND (318 USD) and 5,996 thousand VND (255 USD) as compared to 1,742 thousand VND (74 USD) of An Thanh; The relative number is an increase of 340% - 430% compared to the pure rice production commune. This study aims to analyze and evaluate the types of pesticides, dosage, preparation method, timing, spraying time and behaviors after spraying of rice producers (An Thanh) and vegetable producers in Ngoc Ky and Hung Dao; The study results point out and confirm the special role of management, usage instructions, enhancement of production knowledge, types of drugs used, and non-used drugs and spraying tools, especially for vegetable production areas. For vegetable production areas, it is necessary to plan separate production areas for each type of vegetables, not intercropping vegetables, to provide detailed guidance on the specific type of drugs, the dosage, the time, timing, frequency, and pesticide application method for each type of vegetables. It is also of importance for farmers not to use pesticides leftover of this type of vegetable to other types of vegetables or spray the field borders. Vegetables are usually processed and consumed immediately, which means the time of delivery to consumers is very short, so it is important to help farmers fully understand the degree of negative impact on not only themselves, producers, but also on consumers, on society in the short run and in the long run. Producers and consumers even pay for their lives when using plant protection drugs, using agricultural products, especially vegetables. Health insurance is an important method of sharing disease risks of farmers in general and vegetable producers in particular.