Influence of Pesticide on Biochemical and Hematological Parameters in Beninese Vegetable Farmers

Abstract

In several countries, a lot of researches have shown the toxicity of pesticides on farmers. Meanwhile, few of them have dealt with vegetable farmers in Benin. Therefore, this study has been carried out to assess the effects of pesticides on vegetable farmers’ health. This study is conducted on 30 vegetable farmers who used pesticides and 20 subjects as control group. Pesticides used by vegetable farmers and their risky behavior were investigated. Their blood samples were collected and some tests were performed for hematological and biochemical parameters. For the statistical analysis of the results, Student’s test was used. Our investigations revealed that vegetable farmers of Benin were exposed to different active ingredients of pesticides such as (Abamectin, Acetamiprid, Chlorpyriphos ethyl, Cyfluthrin, Cypermethrin, Emamectin benzoat, Flubendiamid, Lambdacyhalothrin, Mancozeb, Profenofos, Spinosad and Spirotétramate). The hematological parameters showed significant decrease in White blood cell (WBC), Red blood cell (RBC), Hemoglobin (HGB), Hematocrit (HTC), Mean Corpuscular Volume (MCV), Platelet (PLT) count among study group. The enzymatic activities of Aspartate Aminotransferase (AST), Alanine Aminotransferase (ALT) have significantly raised between vegetable farmers and the control group, while the serum concentration in urea and creatinine showed insignificant difference in the study group. These results suggest that pesticides have adverse effects on vegetable farmers of South of Benin.