"Absorption increases with the amount of skin exposed and with skin damage or disease," she said. Because the work is done on the hot, humid days of summer, workers are more likely to work shirtless.
The problem has been accentuated because production research has determined that spacing rows more closely together increases production poundage. That also increases the contact between the leaves and the skin. The harvesting of tobacco requires repeated trips through the field over a number of weeks, as the leaves are harvested from the bottom up.
While the symptoms of green tobacco sickness ordinarily include nausea, vomiting, and dizziness, she said there were no established diagnostic criteria yet. "Other frequently encountered symptoms include abdominal cramps, headache, breathing difficulty, pallor, increased sweating and salivation, chills and fluctuations in blood pressure or heart rate."
Most workers attempt to treat themselves. "Only 9 percent sought medical treatment," she said, "and 7 percent lost work time."
She added, "Many farm workers believe they will be fired and lose their income if they get sick or work too slowly. Green tobacco sickness is an environmental justice issue, part of the growing concern that poor, minority and medically underserved populations bear a disproportionate share of environmental and occupational health risks."
Quandt and other researchers at Wake Forest are now engaged in a three-year epidemiological study of green tobacco sickness among farm workers, financed by the National Institute of Occupational Health and Safety.
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Contact: Robert Conn, Mark Wright or Jim Steele
rconn@wfubmc.edu, mwright@wfubmc.edu, jsteele@wfubmc.edu
336-716-4587
Wake Forest University Baptist Medical Center
20-Feb-2000