Symptoms of toxicity due to occupational exposure among farmers in Tripura, India

Abstract Background Agriculture, being the third most hazardous occupations among all sectors in the world poses serious and an important public health problem. Farmers use huge amount of inorganic pesticides and/or fertilizers (agrochemicals) without any training and proper personal safety to fulfil the increased food demand, resulting into health problems. Therefore, the current study aims to assess the prevalence of toxicity symptoms among the farmers due to use of agrochemicals in the north-eastern state of Tripura, India. Methods To fulfil the objective of the study, primary data was collected from 995 farmers of Dhalai district using multistage stratified random sampling. A semi-structured questionnaire was developed and pre-tested. Bi-variate analysis was used to assess the pattern of toxicity and Chi-square test was applied to test the significance of association with the factors under consideration. Finally, logistic regression was applied to examine the factors independently associated with different toxicities. Findings : Above one-third (39%) of the farmers reported toxicity symptoms while using agrochemicals. Prevalence of symptoms of any toxicities was much higher among males than females. The major toxicity symptoms were skin-rash (16%), vomiting (12%), skin redness (10%), headache (7%), and excessive sweating (6%). Age, sex, occupation, smoking and drinking behaviour were significantly associated with the symptoms of toxicities. Conclusions There is need for increased awareness level and training to accustom the farmers with safe professional practices and personal hygiene. In addition, there is need to examine the farmer welfare government schemes to ensure its reach at the community level.