High exposure to chemical insecticides has been shown to affect the mental abilities of potato farmers in the Carchi Province of Ecuador.

Canadian and Latin American researchers collaborated in the study of the region where 8,000 commercial growers account for 40 per cent of Ecuador's potato production.

Many of the farmers operate mixed potato and dairy farms, and are among the country's heaviest pesticide consumers. Using backpacks, they apply pesticides an average of seven times during the growing season, using up to 43 active ingredients.

Direct skin contact with pesticides, leaky sprayers, and a lack of protective clothing all contribute to the farmers' health problems.

This contact with chemicals was shown to have harmful neurological effects, interfering with the farmers' decision-making abilities and leading to lower productivity, according to Dr. Donald Cole at Ontario's McMaster Institute of Environmental Health.

The researchers found a pesticide poisoning rate of 171 per 100,000 population, similar to the highest rates recorded elsewhere in the developing world.

This study was part of a larger project jointly funded by the International Development Research Centre, IDRC, the Rockefeller Foundation, and other donors to reduce pesticide use and related health problems among potato farmers in the Carchi Province of Ecuador.

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