Pesticides and Herbicides

Pesticides and herbicides were created to help us manage pests such as harmful insects, arachnids (e.g., spiders, ticks and lice), rodents (e.g., rats and mice) and weeds.

While many insects, arachnids and rodents are an important part of the environment, some are responsible for heavy destruction of farm produce. These pests also harm people with their bites or stings. Still other pests are carriers of serious diseases.

Many pesticides and herbicides have been formulated to be absorbed on contact. Pesticides and herbicides can also be harmful if breathed or eaten. Unfortunately, whatever is lethal to a pest or a weed will usually cause illness in human adults and even more severe symptoms in children and pets.

Insecticides	Routes of toxicity	Signs and Symptoms	Common Brands
Organophosphate	Absorbed by inhalation, ingestion, and dermal exposure	Headache, excess salivation, muscle twitching, nausea, diarrhea, seizures, loss of consciousness	Supracide, Dursban, Duratox, Rampart
N-Methyl Carbamate	Absorbed by inhalation and ingestion	Muscle weakness, dizziness, sweating, headache, salivation, nausea, vomiting	Landrin, Temik, Sevin, Famid, Fernos
Organochlorine	Absorbed by inhalation, ingestion, and dermal exposure	Sensory disturbances, headache, dizziness, nausea, hyper excitable state, convulsions	DDT, Kepone, Strobone, Pentac
Biological insecticides	Absorbed by inhalation, ingestion, and dermal exposure	Several cause gastrointestinal infections. Can have central nervous system (CNS) effects as well as cardiovascular effects.	Nicotine, Align, Rotacide, Dipel, Bactur,
Herbicides
Chlorophenoxy	Absorbed by inhalation, ingestion, and dermal exposure	Irritating to skin and mucous membranes. Causes vomiting, diarrhea, headache, confusion, bizarre or aggressive behavior, peculiar odor on breath. Metabolic acidosis, renal failure, irregular heartbeat	Banvel, Diamba, MCPA, MCPB
Pentachlorophenol	Absorbed by inhalation, ingestion, and dermal exposure	Irritation of the nose, throat, and eyes. Hyperthermia, muscle spasm, tremor, labored breathing, and chest tightness indicating serious poisoning	PCP, Chlorophen, Pentacon
Nitrophenolic	Absorbed by inhalation, ingestion, and dermal exposure	Sweating, thirst, fever, headache, confusion, restlessness. Characteristic bright yellow staining of the skin and hair often present with topical exposure	Nitrader, Talan, Triforce, Caldor, Basanite
Pesticides
Arsenic containing	Absorbed by inhalation, ingestion, and dermal exposure	Garlic odor of breath and feces, metallic taste in mouth, adverse GI symptoms, chronic muscle weakness, fatigue, weight loss.	Zoltox, Salvo, Jones Ant Killer
Fungicides	Absorbed by inhalation and ingestion. Absorbed through skin when product contains mercury.	Variable	Terraneb SP, Bravo, Clortran, HCB, Earthcide
Fumigants	Absorbed by inhalation, ingestion, and dermal exposure	Highly variable, many are irritants, can have serious CNS effects, can cause pulmonary edema, can cause severe hypoxia	Chloroform, Lavacide, Meth-O-Gas, Sanifume
Rodenticides	Absorbed by ingestion	Highly variable, can cause bleeding, pulmonary edema, cardiovascular, GI, and CNS effects	Havoc, Liqua-Tox, Rocol, Tomcat