EFFECTS OF PESTICIDES ON HUMAN HEALTH AND THE ENVIRONMENT

Abstract

Generally, the agents or anything that kills insects are called insecticides. Pests are organisms, may be animals or plants, that are harmful to humans or human beings that depend on them, including crops, livestock, and other food-providing enterprises. Man has to compete with these insects to live a healthy life and also to save his food on which he is dependent. Chemicals used to kill or keep away these pests are called chemical pesticides. Microbes, Fungi, Viruses, Organisms like Mycoplasma, Amoeba which are major pests that can cause life threatening effects on other living organisms including humans, plants, insects and animals. Insects are directly attacking other organisms for their food and are also considered as serious pests. These insects have the ability to spread deadly diseases from diseased to healthy. As. Mosquitoes, plant hoppers, fruit borers etc. Plants that are of no use to mankind are also sometimes considered pests, even though they may be food for livestock. Chemical pesticides are those chemicals that can be used to kill pests either directly or indirectly. The broad range of negative impacts of applying pesticides are referred to as the environmental effects of pesticides. One of the primary causes of the detrimental effects of modern industrial agriculture on the environment is the inadvertent use of pesticides. Pesticides can harm nontarget species like plants, animals, and people since they contain poisonous compounds designed to kill pest species. When they are sprayed or distributed throughout entire agricultural areas, more than 98% of sprayed insecticides and 95% of sprayed herbicides end up somewhere other than their intended target species. Other agricultural chemicals, including fertilisers, may also harm the ecosystem.