A Human Biomonitoring Study Assessing Glyphosate and Aminomethylphosphonic Acid (AMPA) Exposures among Farm and Non-Farm Families

Abstract

Glyphosate-based pesticides are the highest-volume used herbicides worldwide. International concerns regarding the potential human adverse effects of glyphosate exposures have heightened since IARC classified glyphosate as probably carcinogenic to humans. Human biomonitoring (HBM) studies have identified ubiquitous exposure to glyphosate and its main breakdown product, aminomethylphosphonic acid (AMPA), from environmental exposures. The IMAGE research project aimed to investigate farm and non-farm families’ exposure to glyphosate while aligning with the Human Biomonitoring for Europe (HBM4EU) initiative. The study recruited non-farm and farm families (who use glyphosate on their farms). Each family member provided a urine sample that was analysed using gas chromatography coupled with tandem mass spectrometry, with a limit of quantification of 0.05 µg/L for glyphosate and AMPA. In addition to general information on background exposures in farm and non-farm families, we investigated relationships in exposure between families and family members. We recruited 68 families, including 54 non-farm and 14 farm families (180 vs. 45 individuals). Some pesticide users (n = 14, all male farmers) had slightly elevated AMPA levels compared to other adult participants but, overall, we observed no significant differences between farm and non-farm families. The main metabolite, AMPA, was quantifiable in twice as many samples as glyphosate (61% vs. 32%), with a maximum concentration of 7.24 µg/L vs. 3.21 µg/L. Compared to previous studies, exposure levels were relatively low and far below current health-based guidance values (3% or less for glyphosate and AMPA). Study results suggest potential exposures from residential co-exposures or living with a pesticide user. This is the first study internationally to investigate glyphosate and AMPA across family members (farm and non-farm). We found comparably low glyphosate and AMPA exposures among these families. These results enhance our understanding of glyphosate exposures for different demographic groups and contribute to the scientific knowledge on exposures required for regulatory risk assessments and the re-evaluation of glyphosate in 2022 by the European Commission.

A Comprehensive Review on Pesticide Residues in Human Urine

“…Sample preparation methods differ depending on the specific analytes of interest. Various organic solvents, such as acetonitrile, ,,,, hexane, methanol, ethyl acetate, , or a mixture of organic solvents, ,,, were utilized for effectively extracting pesticide residues from urine.…”

“…Some studies attributed their findings to environmental exposure. These studies analyzed occupational exposure in farmworkers, farmworkers and their families, spray applicants, and florists’ exposure to pesticides (16 studies). − Additionally, some studies analyzed exposure due to residence close to agricultural areas and/or urban areas (9 studies). ,− Other studies linked the exposure of pesticide residues to the diet (14 studies). ,− Some other studies focused on exposure to pesticides on pregnant women − and lactating mothers, − to understand the transfer of pesticides to children (9 studies). Other studies linked the exposure to urinary pesticides to health issues by targeting a specific group (11 studies), and others were simply generally assessing the levels and frequency of detection of targeted pesticides and metabolites for a given number of participants (total of 13 studies), ,− without specifically linking it to the exposure route or to the health issues.…”

“…This disparity is found to depend on the pesticide used in agriculture. In another study targeting glyphosate and AMPA, no significant differences was found between levels detected in farm family workers and nonfarm family workers, 23 which could suggest that exposure to glyphosate is more associated with diet. Farmworkers who worked in the pome fruits had significantly higher concentrations, and higher detection frequency of dimethyl pesticide metabolites in their urine than those who did not work in these crops due to the highest pesticide application for pome fruits.…”

Impact of occupational pesticide exposure on the human gut microbiome

“…Currently, biomonitoring data indicates that most of the world population is exposed to these chemicals at some level due to the wide range and large amounts of pesticides in use ( Blair et al, 2015 ; Kim et al, 2017 ; Andersen et al, 2022 ; Grau et al, 2022 ; Nomura et al, 2022 ; Ospina et al, 2022 ; Stanfield et al, 2022 ; Govarts et al, 2023 ). The unintended encounter with these compounds often occurs via residues present in food, liquids or air ( Blair et al, 2015 ; Figueiredo et al, 2021 ; Buekers et al, 2022 ; Connolly et al, 2022 ; Grau et al, 2022 ), but employment settings in particular are linked to higher levels of exposure, and workers are likely to be repetitively exposed ( Blair et al, 2015 ; Curl et al, 2020 ; Peters et al, 2021 ). As a consequence, there is a body of evidence for association of pesticide exposure with increased risk for several diseases, including metabolic and immune disorders, cancers and neurological outcomes ( Blair et al, 2015 ; Cosselman et al, 2015 ; Parks et al, 2019 ; Curl et al, 2020 ; Fuhrimann et al, 2021 ).…”

Invited Perspective: The Continuing Debate—Is Glyphosate a Problem, and Can an Organic Diet Protect Us from Exposures?

“…Studies of farm families have also seen family members’ urinary glyphosate concentrations correlate with pesticide users within the household. 10 , 17 …”