WOMEN'S SAFETY AND HEALTH ISSUES AT WORK
Job Area: Agriculture
In 2004, the Bureau of Labor Statistics estimated 580,000 women were working in agriculture, forestry, and fishing. In agriculture alone, about 24% of farmers are women. 1
Related Resources
Acute pesticide poisoning among agricultural workers in the United
States, 1998-2005
The rate of acute pesticide poisoning was found to be almost twice as
high in women agricultural workers compared to men agricultural workers.
Chronic bronchitis among nonsmoking farm women in the agricultural health
study
This study looked at agricultural risk factors for chronic bronchitis
among nonsmoking farm women. Exposures to pesticides, grain, and dust
were found to be associated with chronic bronchitis among nonsmoking farm
women.
DDT exposure, work in agriculture, and time to pregnancy among
farmworkers in California
Longer time to conceive was found in female – but not male – migrant
farmworkers who reported they were exposed to agricultural and home
pesticides.
Effects of exposure to polychlorinated biphenyls and organochlorine
pesticides on thyroid function during pregnancy
The study involving mostly young Latina women from farmworker families
found that exposure to PCBs and/or hexachlorobenzene at background levels
may affect thyroid function during pregnancy. Thyroid hormones of mothers
may play an essential role in the development of their children.
Farmwork-related injury among farmers 50 years of age and older in
Kentucky and South Carolina: a cohort study, 2002-2005
This longitudinal survey in which approximately half of the farmers were
female found that women were at higher risk of injury when performing
animal-related tasks or crop-related tasks compared to women performing
neither of those tasks.
Gliomas and farm pesticide exposure in women: The Upper Midwest Health
Study
This study examined exposures to pesticides among women in rural areas of
Iowa, Michigan, Minnesota and Wisconsin. This is the first case-control
study of glioma among rural residents that looked at the effect of
pesticide exposure and work practices in women. Gliomas are a type of
cancer in the brain or spine. No evidence for association of pesticide
use and glioma risk was found.
Maternal occupational exposure to pesticides and the risk of
musculoskeletal birth defects: a preliminary analysis
This study estimated job-related pesticide exposure among a group of
women. Early findings from the study found that women whose jobs exposed
them to herbicides and insecticides had a higher risk of having babies
with a birth defect involving the intestines or a condition in which all
or part of the arm or leg is missing.
Reciprocal association between atopy and respiratory symptoms in fully
employed female, but not male, workers in swine operations
Findings of a study involving workers in large commercial swine
operations suggested that exposures to inhaled substances in the
workplace may have different effects on men and women.
Risk factors for female infertility in an agricultural region
This study looked at women working or living in an agricultural setting
and the risk of female infertility. The results suggest that certain
agricultural, residential and lifestyle choices may affect the risk of
female infertility.
- Bureau of Labor Statistics. Household data: Employed persons in agriculture [Cited on January 29, 2008].
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