Urinary Excretion of 2,4-D in Commercial Lawn Specialists

Abstract

Occupational exposure to the herbicide 2,4-D was measured in 45 commercial lawn care specialists who had been spraying the herbicide on lawns on a daily basis, excluding Sundays, for a period of at least 3 weeks. Exposure was determined by collecting all urine voided during a 24-hour period, and analysis of 2,4-D was made by gas chromatography. The 24-hour urinary excretion of 2,4-D was considered to be a reasonable estimate of the daily absorbed dose. The urinary concentrations of 2,4-D ranged from non-detectable at a sensitivity of 0.01 ppm to 2.29 ppm with a median of 0.18 ppm. The quantity excreted on a body weight basis was 0.0032 ± 0.0010, 0.0063 ± 0.0018, 0.00035 ± 0.0005, and 0.00138 ± 0.0005 mg/kg respectively at 4 work locations. These values are considerably less than the WHO/FAO acceptable daily dietary intake of 0.3 mg/kg for 2,4-D residues in human food. Yeary, R.A.: Urinary excretion of 2,4-D in commercial lawn specialists.