John Mitchell wrote:
>
> The CDC issued a new report in June this year on 97 cases of pesticide
> poisoning in the food service industry involving pyrethrins and pyrethroids
> (automated aerial sprays are used to control flying insects). In the
> editorial note, the authors claim this is the first study to have discovered
> cardiovascular and neurologic symptoms affiliated with exposure to these
> pesticides, but it seems only when they are used as an aerial spray, and only
> immediately after exposure. Three of the cases involved resmethrin.
> Address is as follows:
> http://www.cdc.gov/epo/mmwr/preview/mmwrhtml/mm4922a3.htm

97 cases between 1986 and 1999 = only 7 cases per year. This is out of tens,
probably hundreds of thousands of applications per year (since there are tens
of thousands of automatic pyrethrin aerosol machines installed in restaurants
around the country). No one seriously injured - even workers sprayed directly in
the eye when servicing the machines.

Personally, I think this outstanding safety record should be balanced against
who knows how many hundreds or thousands of cases of food poisoning
that would be caused by letting flies roam free in restaurants.

Paul Cherubini