EPHT – Agriculture | Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services

Chemicals to help control pests (also called pesticides) are used on farms and in other agricultural settings, like forests, nurseries and greenhouses. They are also used at home to help control weeds, insects, and rodents. The Missouri Environmental Public Health Tracking (EPHT) Program shares data on pesticide use in Missouri.

Pesticide Exposure?

Call the Poison Control Center at 1-800-222-1222 for steps to take in case of possible poisoning.

Health Effects of Pesticide Exposure

Most pesticide exposures happen when they are sprayed and breathed in. Pesticides can also be absorbed through the skin or swallowed.

If you are exposed to enough pesticide at once:

your eyes, nose, throat or skin may become irritated

If you are exposed to pesticides for a long period of time, you may experience:

Changes in hormones
Reproductive and birth problems, like lower fertility, miscarriage or birth defects
Harm to central nervous system
Cancer

Pesticide Exposure Prevention Tips

To keep your exposure to pesticides low, you can:

Wear protective clothing and follow instructions when applying pesticides
Use other ways to control pests at home, like:
- Keeping bags of food tightly sealed
- Cleaning kitchen often
- Sealing cracks and crevices
- Using pest traps instead of poison
Use natural or homemade pesticides
Follow instructions on insect spray bottles
Limit your intake of pesticides on food by:
- Washing fruits and vegetables well
- Peeling fruits and vegetables
- Trimming fat and skin from meat, poultry, and fish
- Choosing organic if possible, especially fruits and vegetables that usually have high amounts of pesticides, like leafy greens, grapes, and strawberries

Announcements

Get the Facts | Missouri has nearly 90,000 farms, covering about two-thirds of the state's land.

Announcements

Get the Facts | Missouri produces beef cattle, hogs, turkeys, soybeans, corn, grain sorghum, cotton, hay, and wheat.

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Pesticide Data

Chemical Applications on Agricultural Land

Agriculture Chemicals - Use on Land

Other Data Sources

Other data sources provide additional data on pesticide use and exposure.

The National Environmental Public Health Tracking Program

Missouri Environmental Public Health Tracking (EPHT) is a program within the Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services and funded by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. EPHT is part of a network of people and information systems which delivers a core set of health, exposure, and hazards data, information summaries and tools to enable analysis, visualization and reporting of insights drawn from data. Those insights are intended to help data drive actions and improve community health.

EPHT – Agriculture

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Announcements

Announcements

Pesticide Data

Chemical Applications on Agricultural Land

Other Data Sources