Agricultural safety and health
[2] Many of the injuries, long-term or short, prevalent in the occupation are hearing loss, musculoskeletal disorders, respiratory diseases, poisoning from pesticides and chemicals, reproductive issues, and many other ailments.
[4] The National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) estimated that 374 farmers and farmworkers died due to a work-related injury in 2012, tractor overturns being the number one cause death.
[6] This report was funded by NIOSH, who assisted with the initiation of research and implementation regarding agricultural health issues, illnesses, and safety measures in the workplace.
In all though, there are similarities in the risk factors and illnesses that agricultural workers face on a day to day basis as in injuries from machinery, large animals, pesticides, respiratory illness-causing factors, musculoskeletal disorders, hearing loss, reproductive issues regarding women, and many more.
According to a 2011 study by the National Agricultural Statistics Service, a major cause of injury and deaths in the workplace comes from farm machinery/vehicles, specifically tractor overturns.
Machinery are usually devoid of safety measures and pose a greater threat, since agricultural workers fix and operate these machines themselves for utilization in the fields.
Bending, twisting, and stretching motions that are apparent when operating these equipment causes much back and neck strain, leading to more exacerbated conditions over time.
[3] Livestock can also pose a threat to the musculoskeletal systems of the body due to their large weight and varied behavior, possibly leading to kicking and unintentional blows by the animal to the agricultural worker.
[2] No matter the cause, it is apparent that musculoskeletal disorders are common in the agricultural industry and need to be addressed to treat the ailment as quickly as possible.
[9] Chemicals and pesticides used to control and/or kill insects, vegetation, fungi, and small animals can also be harmful to humans.
[14] Part of the problem arises from a lack of adequate safety measures as well as standardized utilization of personal protective equipment.
Moderate to severe symptoms include stomach cramps, muscle twitches, extreme weakness, mental confusion, blurred vision, difficulty breathing, fever, intense thirst, and death.
From this study, the pesticides that were deemed to cause most cases of diseases were cholinesterase inhibitors, pyrethroids, inorganic compounds, and dithiocarbamates.
Insecticides, specifically cholinesterase inhibitors (N-methyl carbamates and organophosphates) cause a majority of the illnesses in 54% of the individuals in the case.
[13] Recently, agricultural respiratory diseases have been rising from development of animal production facilities causing toxic fumes to permeate the area.
Much of the irritants involved in causing these diseases are ammonia, organic dust, hydrogen sulfide, bacterial microorganisms, mold, and various hydrocarbons.
Most zoonotic diseases are caused by organisms such as parasites, bacteria, prions, fungi, protozoa, and viruses, which reside within the animal but can be pathogens to humans.
[17] Because of their close contact with animals, farmers, veterinarians, ranchers, and other agricultural workers are more at risk for contracting zoonotic diseases.
Examples of zoonotic diseases include anthrax, avian influenza, brucellosis, cryptosporidiosis, giardiasis, leptospirosis, mycobacterium bovis, orthohantavirus, psittacosis, rabies, tularemia, and Zika virus.
[18] A migrant farm worker is an individual who is required to be absent from a permanent place of residence for the purpose of seeking employment in agricultural work.
[21] Migrant farm workers are exposed to several different kinds of pesticides, tractor and mechanical injuries.
These numbers for deaths are four-fold higher than other comparable work related industries such as hunting, fishing, and construction.
Children who play in ditches next to fields where the pesticide-contaminated water runs into are at high risk for pesticide exposure.
In addition, the average income of a farm worker is below the federal poverty line, which puts them at risk for further health disparities.
Nonfatal injuries in agriculture that occur may permanently disable, injure, or kill youths over 13 on the farm in the United States.
The National Institute of Occupational Safety and Health has created the Childhood Agricultural Injury Prevention Initiative for young workers and their employers to reduce the amount of injures on the job.
[29] In 1991, the Surgeon General's Conference in Des Moines, Iowa, was held to bring awareness to the risks that children face in production agriculture.
