Links to recent Anvil-related research.

Anvil is a pesticide sprayed on Chicago neighborhoods as an attempt to reduce West Nile Mosquitoes.

It doesn't work: A new study by the Harvard School of Public Health, funded by the Center for Disease Control, shows that spray control of adult mosquitos is ineffective. That's millions of dollars wasted and lots of toxic burden added to Chicago.

Pyrethroids found in urine of school children A Longitudinal Approach to Assessing Urban and Suburban Children's Exposure to Pyrethroid Pesticides **They could tell how old a child was by their pyrethroid level. They could tell if their parents used pyrethroid pesticides. - J**

Thyroid Danger "In animal studies,...exposure to pyrethroids can suppress both the thyroid's T4 and T3 levels, and raise Thyroid Stimulating Hormone (TSH) levels"

Breast Cancer Risk: Estrogenic potential of certain pyrethroid compounds in the MCF-7 human breast carcinoma cell line.

Endocrine and other systems at risk: "immense care is warranted in the use of insecticides, because they not only affect the liver, kidney and other organs but also may alter the activity of the endocrine glands."

Neurotoxic Effects: "... the distribution and function of these [pyrethroids] across the central nervous system are poorly characterized. The review also provides an overview of recent studies that suggest additional effects of pyrethroids: developmental neurotoxicity, the production of neuronal death, and action mediated via pyrethroid metabolites. The evidence for these is at present equivocal, but all 3 carry important implications for human health."

Here is a list of studies which show the health and environmental effects of synthetic pyrethroids.

Pyrethroid pesticides are health hazards

EPA SCIENTISTS PROTEST PENDING PESTICIDE APPROVALS — Unacceptable Risk to Children and Political Pressure on Scientists Decried

exerpt:

"In their letter, the EPA scientists charge that agency “risk assessments cannot state with confidence the degree to which any exposure of a fetus, infant or child to a pesticide will or will not adversely affect their neurological development.” In addition, the scientists contend that –

* “Our colleagues in the Pesticide Program feel besieged by political pressure exerted by Agency officials perceived to be too closely aligned with the pesticide industry and former EPA officials now representing the pesticide and agricultural community”;
* “In the rush to meet the August 2006 …deadline, many steps in the risk assessment and risk management process are being abbreviated or eliminated in violation of the principles of scientific integrity and objectivity…”
FEDERAL JUDGE STRIKES DOWN BUSH POLICY LOOSENING CONTROLS ON PESTICIDE USE
28 August 2006

U.S. District Judge John C. Coughenour has struck down a Bush administration policy loosening regulation of toxic pesticides. He found the rule change "striking in its total lack of any evidence of technical or scientific support for the policy positions ultimately adopted" and further chastised the government for failing to properly apply the Endangered Species Act.

In 2001, the government began permitting the sale of regulated pesticides without consulting with the National Marine Fisheries Service or the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, as required by the Endangered Species Act (ESA). Judge Coughenour ordered the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to hold the consultations for at least 55 pesticides, with respect to their possible harm to salmon species.

The government in 2004 instead simply altered the rules for procedure, permitting the pesticides to continue to be sold without the consultations ordered by the court and required by law. Judge Coughenour's ruling orders the EPA to follow both the previous ruling and the ESA. He also accused the administration of seeking to "ignore" the legal requirements of the Endangered Species Act.

An attorney for the Oakland-based Earthjustice, one of the 9 groups suing the EPA and Interior Department over the rules change, said "Pesticides are driving America's wildlife toward extinction" and called the ruling a victory for checks and balances and the rule of law. Patti Goldman went on to say "this administration wants to remove the checks and balances that hold them accountable", referring to the consequences of not following the regulatory process laid out by the nation's key environmental laws. [s]

• ENN: "Judge Strikes Down Pesticide Usage Rule"
• SF Chronicle: "Judge rules against Bush on pesticides"
• SPI: "Judge rejects Bush decision on pesticides"

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David Pimentel, Ph.D, entomologist at Cornell University states that “In order to prove whether pesticides are effectively killing mosquitoes, you need five days of monitoring mosquito populations before and after the spraying.” This is consistent with CDC recommendations for continuous monitoring of control strategies for effectiveness and resistance. For instance, resistance to sumithrin, the active ingredient in Anvil,© has been reported in cockroaches, aphids, mosquitoes and lice.

Public health officials and environmental groups are equally disturbed by the lack of information officials are providing to the public on the health and environmental impacts of the chemicals they are spraying. Often officials claim the pesticides are safe because they are registered by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)- a claim that is illegal to make. Many mosquito control and household insecticides are synthetic pyrethroids, with impacts typical of neurotoxins, such as headaches, dizziness, nausea, and irritation.

There are also serious chronic health concerns related to exposure. EPA classifies some pyrethroids as possible human carcinogens and many are endocrine disruptors, which means, even at low levels, they can adversely affect reproduction, sexual development, interfere with the immune system, and increase chances of breast cancer. In breast cancer cells sumithrin increases the _expression of a gene involved with cell proliferation in the mammary gland. Pyrethroids may also trigger respiratory problems such as asthma, a particular problem for children in urban areas. Further, piperonyl butoxide (PBO), the synergist in many synthetic pyrethroid products that increases the toxicity, is also classified as a possible carcinogen by EPA, causes atrophied testes, and reduces the activity of important immune system components.

Last summer, CDC released its Third National Report on Human Exposure to Environmental Chemicals, showing pyrethroids in the urine of more than 50% of the subjects tested.

California Notice to Registrants 2006-13 (August 18, 2006) -- Notice of Decision to Begin Reevaluation of Certain Pesticide Products Containing Pyrethroids (Anvil contains Pyrethroids) Pursuant to Article 8, Subchapter 1, Chapter 2, Division 6 of Title 3 of the California Code of Regulations, the Director of the Department of Pesticide Regulation (DPR) notices her decision to begin a reevaluation of certain pesticide products containing one or more pyrethroid active ingredients.

Spraying of Anvil 2+2® may present risks to children, senior citizens, immune compromised or chemically sensitive and people with asthma or allergies (particularly ragweed).

This pesticide has some known toxic effects, but mostly it hasn't been studied.

For example, in the environment, we know that it is toxic to fish, bees, and other aquatic life. We don't know what else it kills.

In people, we know that in low doses, it is a lung irritant and that in high doses it causes tremors and other neurological problems.

We know that the state of California recently announced that it would reevaluate it's safety.

We know that some scientists and doctors warn that it is likely to mimic estrogen, and so we should study to see if it increases the risk of breast cancer.

Symptoms vary from person to person. Some symptoms are: eye, nose or throat irritation, wheezing, nausea, vomiting, runny or stuffy nose, chest pain or difficulty breathing, headaches, numb or prickly feeling on face or hands. Skin contact can cause rashes, itching or blisters. Children, in particular, may be at greater risk of experiencing adverse effects from the application of Anvil since they may have the potential for greater exposure than adults. Some animals may also experience adverse effects — so bring in your pets.

Fort Worth, TX, Washington, DC, Murfreesboro, TN and other cities across the nation have decided not to spray because of the high incidence of asthma in their cities, research that shows spraying is ineffective and there are questions about the whether the spray is, in the long run, worse than the problem.