Parental risk perception of 0-3-year-old children exposure to household pesticides

Abstract

The objective of this work was to know the practices and risk perception of household pesticides (HPs) of mothers and fathers of children in early developmental stages.

Subjects and Method: Qualitative research carried out in 2015. We conducted interviews in 18 homes with mothers and fathers of children aged 0 to 3 years registered in the General Health Insurance Plan of the Hospital Italiano de Buenos Aires (Metropolitan Area of Buenos Aires). The analytical categories were identified, interpretive analytical categories of higher-level abstraction were conceptualized, and finally, diagrams were constructed to represent and organize the findings.

Results: The interviews showed that mothers and fathers: 1) used HPs regularly, 2) showed low concern for the health hazards of HPs and other household chemicals, except for a small, more sensitized group of parents, 3) they were more concerned regarding mosquito bites than exposure of their children to HPs, 4) relied on fumigation services and the normative framework that regulates them, and 5) expressed interest and willingness to receive more information and orientation from the pediatrician about the safe use of chemical products at home. Other analytical categories showed a constant parental adjustment between toxicity, pathogenicity, hygiene, and well-being.

Conclusions: Since home exposures levels to HPs considered safe for adults may be toxicologically relevant for young children, government and health agencies should provide parents with tools to decode HPs marketing and publicity messages, as well as to conceptualize the relationship between HPs use and childhood health disorders.