Dataset Information

Occupational Farm Work Activities Influence Workers' Indoor Home Microbiome.

ABSTRACT:

Background

Farm work entails a heterogeneous mixture of exposures that vary considerably across farms and farmers. Farm work is associated with various health outcomes, both adverse and beneficial. One mechanism by which farming exposures can impact health is through the microbiome, including the indoor built environment microbiome. It is unknown how individual occupational exposures shape the microbial composition in workers' homes.

Objectives

We investigated associations between farm work activities, including specific tasks and pesticide use, and the indoor microbiome in the homes of 468 male farmers.

Methods

Participants were licensed pesticide applicators, mostly farmers, enrolled in the Agricultural Lung Health Study from 2008-2011. Vacuumed dust from participants' bedrooms underwent whole-genome shotgun sequencing for indoor microbiome assessment. Using questionnaire data, we evaluated 6 farm work tasks (processing of either hay, silage, animal feed, fertilizer, or soy/grains, and cleaning grain bins) and 19 pesticide ingredients currently used in the past year, plus 7 persistent banned pesticide ingredients ever used.

Results

All 6 work tasks were associated with increased within-sample microbial diversity, with a positive dose-response for the sum of tasks (p=0.001). All tasks were associated with altered overall microbial compositions (weighted UniFrac p=0.001) and with higher abundance of specific microbes, including soil-based microbes such as Haloterrigena . Among the 19 pesticides, only current use of glyphosate and past use of lindane were associated with increased within-sample diversity (p=0.02-0.04). Ten currently used pesticides and all 7 banned pesticides were associated with altered microbial composition (p=0.001-0.04). Six pesticides were associated with differential abundance of certain microbes.

Discussion

Specific farm activities and exposures can impact the dust microbiome inside homes. Our work suggests that occupational farm exposures could impact the health of workers and their families through modifying the indoor environment, specifically the microbial composition of house dust, offering possible future intervention targets.

SUBMITTER: Dalton KR

PROVIDER: S-EPMC10473816 | biostudies-literature | 2023 Aug

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Publications

Occupational Farm Work Activities Influence Workers' Indoor Home Microbiome.

Dalton Kathryn R KR Lee Mikyeong M Wang Ziyue Z Zhao Shanshan S Parks Christine G CG Beane-Freeman Laura E LE Motsinger-Reif Alison A AA London Stephanie J SJ

medRxiv : the preprint server for health sciences 20230821

<h4>Background</h4>Farm work entails a heterogeneous mixture of exposures that vary considerably across farms and farmers. Farm work is associated with various health outcomes, both adverse and beneficial. One mechanism by which farming exposures can impact health is through the microbiome, including the indoor built environment microbiome. It is unknown how individual occupational exposures shape the microbial composition in workers' homes.<h4>Objectives</h4>We investigated associations between ...[more]

PMID: 37662364

Similar Datasets

Project description:BackgroundFarm work entails a heterogeneous mixture of exposures that vary considerably across farms and farmers. Farm work is associated with various health outcomes, both adverse and beneficial. One mechanism by which farming exposures can impact health is through the microbiome, including the indoor home environment microbiome. It is unknown how individual occupational exposures shape the microbial composition in workers' homes.ObjectivesWe investigated associations between farm work activities, including specific tasks and pesticide use, and the indoor microbiome in the homes of 468 male farmers.MethodsParticipants were licensed pesticide applicators, mostly farmers, enrolled in the Agricultural Lung Health Study from 2008 to 2011. Vacuumed dust from participants' bedrooms underwent whole-genome shotgun sequencing for indoor microbiome assessment. Using questionnaire data, we evaluated 6 farm work tasks (processing of either hay, silage, animal feed, fertilizer, or soy/grains, and cleaning grain bins) and 19 pesticide ingredients currently used in the past year, plus 7 banned persistent pesticide ingredients ever used.ResultsAll 6 work tasks were associated with increased microbial diversity levels, with a positive dose-response for the total number of tasks performed (P = 0.001). All tasks were associated with altered microbial compositions (weighted UniFrac P = 0.001) and with higher abundance of specific microbes, including soil-based commensal microbes such as Haloterrigena. Among the 19 pesticides, current use of glyphosate and past use of lindane were associated with increased microbial diversity (P = 0.02-0.04). Ten currently used pesticides and all 7 banned pesticides were associated with altered microbial composition (P = 0.001-0.04). Six pesticides were associated with differential abundance of certain microbes.DiscussionDifferent farm activities and exposures can uniquely impact the dust microbiome inside homes. Our work suggests that changes to the home microbiome could serve as one pathway for how occupational exposures impact the health of workers and their cohabitating family members, offering possible future intervention targets.

Project description:BackgroundThe demand for home care workers (HCWs) is increasing, but home care services face challenges in recruiting and retaining skilled workers, partly due to hazards in the work environment. Transportation to client visits is an important part of HCWs' working conditions, with various modes (e.g., walking, cycling, driving) being utilized. However, these modes are often implemented without considering HCWs' perceptions of their use. Therefore, our study aimed to understand HCWs' perceptions and experiences of using different transportation modes at work, and how they may influence health.MethodsFourteen HCWs from a home care unit in Trondheim (Norway) participated in focus group interviews. The interviews were analyzed using a reflexive thematic analysis approach including reflexive journaling. The analytical process was guided by a biopsychosocial understanding of health.ResultsThe analysis showed that when different transportation modes were assigned, predictability of the assignment was important for the HCWs. Both walking and driving were regarded to have both positive and negative health impacts. When walking, informants thought that getting fresh air outdoors and doing physical activity was health-promoting, while bad weather conditions and too much walking could be negative for their health. When driving a car, informants talked about privacy and getting physical rest as positive for their health, while traffic and parking conditions could be stressful. Individual factors such as age, physical health, and strong preferences were highlighted as important to consider when planning HCWs' transportation modes in an occupational health perspective.ConclusionsWalking now and then between client visits was generally believed by the HCWs to lead to positive health effects compared to only driving a car. Introducing planning of various transportation modes in advance, so that they are predictable, seems important to reduce stress among HCWs. In addition, some individual factors should be considered in the planning, and it should be realized that the planning likely represents a trade-off between promoting the psychosocial work environment when driving a car and potentially enhancing long-term physical health when using active transportation. Thus, biopsychosocial aspects of health should be considered when planning the mode of transport between client visits for HCWs.

Project description:IntroductionAlthough many workers are protected from exposure to secondhand tobacco smoke (SHS), home health and community care workers enter domestic settings where SHS is commonly present. Little is known about the extent of SHS exposure among this occupational group.MethodsA rapid review to examine the literature on home health and community care workers' exposure to SHS at work and identify research gaps. Systematic searches combining terms for SHS exposure (eg, "tobacco smoke pollution") with terms for home health and care workers, patients and settings (eg, "home health nursing") were run in CINAHL and Medline (with no date or language limitations). Web site and backward-forward citation searches identified further papers for narrative review.ResultsTwenty relevant publications covering seventeen studies considered home health or community care workers' exposure to SHS either solely or as part of an assessment of other workplace hazards. Eight studies provided data on either the proportion of home care workers exposed to SHS or the frequency of exposure to SHS. No studies provided quantification of SHS concentrations experienced by this group of workers.ConclusionsExposure to SHS is likely to be common for workers who enter private homes to provide care. There is a need for research to understand the number of workers exposed to SHS, and the frequency, duration, and intensity of the exposure. Guidance should be developed to balance the rights and responsibilities of those requiring care alongside the need to prevent the harmful effects of SHS to workers providing care in domestic settings.ImplicationsVery little is known about home health and community care workers' exposure to SHS. There is a need for research to quantify how many workers are exposed, how often and for how long exposure occurs, and the concentrations of SHS experienced. In many countries, home health care workers may be one of the largest working groups that experience exposure to SHS as part of their employment. The public health community needs to engage in a debate about how home health care workers can be best protected from SHS.

Dataset Information

Occupational Farm Work Activities Influence Workers' Indoor Home Microbiome.

Background

Objectives

Methods

Results

Discussion

Publications

Occupational Farm Work Activities Influence Workers' Indoor Home Microbiome.

Similar Datasets

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