Another human health impact lies with the farm workers who apply it and the communities that live near agricultural land where it’s sprayed. This exposure to paraquat, whether inhaled or absorbed through the skin, can lead to severe poisoning cases among farmworkers, and repeated exposure can cause chronic health conditions like Parkinson’s Disease.
Paraquat is responsible for causing the deaths of thousands of farm workers globally since it was brought onto the market in 1962, under the name Gramoxone. In acute poisoning cases people can experience abdominal pain, vomiting, gastro-intestinal bleeding, comas and seizures.
Repeated, long-term exposure to paraquat even at low levels can lead to a number of chronic health conditions to respiratory systems, kidneys, liver, and most notably, paraquat has been strongly associated with the development of Parkinson’s Disease.