POISON

Agricultural petro-chemical pesticides, fertilizers, fungicides, rodenticides, and other chemicals are great. They make large scale agricultural production possible with little human labour. At the same time, these chemicals that do certain jobs, get into the things we eat, the soil the feeds the flora, and the water that hydrates the plants, our eco systems and our bodies. Where, most often, they wreak havoc. Eventually.

These chemicals, or poison as they are referred to colloquially in Guyana, don't know who the target is, so they harm beneficial things as well as the one's that compete with us for the things we're growing. Many chemicals that are banned in the so called developed world, continue to be produced by those countries that won't allow them to be used in their borders, for export to the "global south."  DDT, since 2007 produced only in India for mainly Indian consumption, is the notorious exemplar of good gone wrong.  In 1939 it was first developed as a malarial and typhus combatant, used as a pesticide in 1972 was banned in US agriculture, when it was shown to kill wildlife, birds, increase cancer in humans and for the lack of understanding on longer human and ecological health, and banned internationally under the Stockholm Convention (2001-2004). Yet, up until at least 2008 USAID supported and promoted the use of DDT in some places in Africa (USAID The Use of DDT), where malaria, eradicated in the developed world, continues to kill roughly  627 000 people per year (WHO).

Those with the luxury of deep enough pockets consume organic alternatives to these poison chemicals that have long term devastating ramifications for the human body -- cancer is the big one that scares people but more common effects include: memory loss, reduced  visual ability, diarrhea, hormone disruption, allergies, reproduction and fetal development problems, and mood and behaviour disorders (toxopedia.org). These can come about from consumption of products but also, and more importantly for me at this time, for those who handle these chemicals closely in a more concentrated form -- the farmers.

According to the WHO 30 % of successful suicides each year are due to pesticide self-poisoning, most of which occur in rural areas. Easy access. But, not only are these chemicals it the means to end one's life, they can also be the cause of those suicidal impulses. Professor Gerard Hutchinson, a psychiatrist who heads the department of clinical medical sciences at the University of the West Indies Trinidad campus notes international studies suggest overuse of herbicides and pesticides can lead to impulsive suicidal behaviour  This year Guyana has the dubious distinction for being the country with the most suicides 44.2/100,000 people. (Economist). That's a lot. Generally 2-6 times more men than women kill themselves and those who do are generally between 15-29 years old. 

A few days ago I found out about the suicide death of one of my Guyanese colleagues. A farmer, young guy, rural residence, using poison regularly for agricultural purposes. A cheerful guy that I had some good laughs with. I don't know why he did it. I don't know how he did it. It doesn't matter to me. What matters is a good person is gone.

The major risk factors for suicide are listed as mental health and substance abuse. I would consider poison exposure as a sort of substance abuse, in the effects, and as for the former... In Guyana mental health issues such as depression are highly stigmatized (along with suicide).  In May 2013 the WHO prepared report, the first of its kind, around suicide, called PreventingSuicide: A Global Imperative.

In the report it says, "Given the widespread stigma around suicide, most people who are contemplating suicide do not know who to speak to. Rather than encouraging suicidal behaviour, talking openly can give an individual other options or the time to rethink his/her decision, thereby preventing suicide." The Report also says that awareness around suicide (and mental health) needs to be raised, surveys and data quality need to be conducted and the data improved. These issues need to be destigmatized, the health system needs to be mobilized and health workers trained and people need to have access to emotional support, and that "Access to emotional support at the right time can prevent suicide."

I don't know if these things would have prevented my colleague from taking his life. I don't know if his decision was the wrong one. I only hope that his family can find some peace and remember the joyful times they shared. Rest In Peace JH.

Further Reading: 

Bertolote, José M., Alexandra Fleischmann, Alexander Butchart, and Nida Besbelli. "Suicide, suicide attempts and pesticides: a major hidden public health problem." Bulletin of the World Health Organization 84, no. 4 (2006): 260-260.

Gunnell, D., R. Fernando, Medhani Hewagama, W. D. D. Priyangika, Flemming Konradsen, and Michael Eddleston. "The impact of pesticide regulations on suicide in Sri Lanka." International Journal of Epidemiology 36, no. 6 (2007): 1235-1242.

Gunnell, David, and Michael Eddleston. "Suicide by intentional ingestion of pesticides: a continuing tragedy in developing countries." International Journal of Epidemiology 32, no. 6 (2003): 902-909.

Graafsma, T., A. J. F. M. Kerkhof, David Gibson, R. Badloe, and L. M. Van de Beek. "High rates of suicide and attempted suicide using pesticides in Nickerie, Suriname, South America." Crisis: The Journal of Crisis Intervention and Suicide Prevention 27, no. 2 (2006): 77-81.

Jeyaratnam, J. "Acute pesticide poisoning: a major global health problem."World Health Stat Q 43, no. 3 (1990): 139-44.

Pickett, William, Will D. King, Ronald EM Lees, Monica Bienefeld, Howard I. Morrison, and Robert J. Brison. "Suicide mortality and pesticide use among Canadian farmers." American journal of industrial medicine 34, no. 4 (1998): 364-372.