Cotton is one of the most heavily sprayed crops out there and much of what is grown "conventionally" is also Genetically Enginnered to be resitant to one of the most overused herbicides manyfactured. Cottonseed meal, which is loaded with large amounts of residual 'cides of all kinds probably is not something an organic grower should think of using.

On an above link, it said that endosulfan is aDsorbed by soil. That' a 'd' not a 'b'. That means it sticks to the soil particles, like 'round up' does. That makes me wonder if clay or subsoil, could be shaken in a bag with cottons, draw the endosulfan out of the cotton, adsorbing it, then be washed away? This would not be good for someone with lupus, as clayey soil, is full of fine sand/ silica particles. Cornstarch in water, behaves like watery clay, [slip]. Is cornstarch's structure enough like clay, to adsorb endosulphan particles? Could you just dampen some cornstarch, and shake it up with cottons? let it sit 1/2 hour and wash out the adsorbed endosulfans? Anyone know? Someone could try this, measure the residue and see....This idea is way outside the box, but could it help?

Well, News out of California links autism and pesticides. The pesticides were airborne, from use on some veggies, and on cotton. The last paragraph in the linked article, lists the crops, and the chemicals used. There were clusters of autism, in children living around these fields. Most pesticides cause DNA changes on a cellular level. It is not surprising to find direct links. Although these two, are shown to be strongly linked to autism, it is likely that others - bug killers, weed killers, and fungicides [all are pesticides damaging to formative cells] are harming those that are most susceptible. The ones that are already sick, and the yet unborn, These are chemicals produced to cause death in lower organisms, that are more resilient than we are. We should avoid these chemicals, especially when combined on our plates. DO NOT USE PESTICIDES IN THE HOUSE or the YARD, If, you have affected kids in the neighborhood, or young women who could get pregnant, or family members.... They are grossly overused, and these two especially, should be taken out of use immediately. Of course we will be probably be buying food and clothing with this on it for years, while it is being used up. Grrr Consider organic vegetables, especially those mentioned in the last paragraph of the article. We still need to eat our veggies. Lettuce grows well in cool weather and in some shade- I'm putting some in today, and may try a windowbox. Does anyone have a list of those vegetables, with the most and least, pesticide residues? Washing veggies when you get them home, reduces some anti-ripening agents, and waiting a day or two helps weaken some fungicides, but who wants tired veggies? There is probably no way to get this nasty stuff off . But ANY ides would be appreciated. Going completely organic is very [ too] expensive, and very hard. Meats, fish, poultry and, especially dairy, are a good place to go organic. Who knows what hormones and antibiotics added there do, when mixed with the toxins we eat. Although this is disgusting news, it does give hope, a path for action and discovery, and the information to protect ourselves. Good Luck, florey - Keep those updates coming. Here is a link that might be useful: autism and pesticides

Hi AuroraWA: You are right about the genetic factor which raise the risk of PD & plus more sensitive to pesticides. Not everyone is allergic to raisins like my kid, she has hay fever and many food allergies, which make her sensitive to pesticides. Raisins also has sulfur dioxide added as preservative. Sulfur dioxide is highest in yellow raisins, and that's her favorite for the past years. Thank God that my kid stops stuttering and neck-muscle-spasm after removal of raisins and dirty-dozen produce from her diet. Sam's Club, Walmart, and Trader's Joe all have organic produce at decent price. Genetic factor: if I have 1/4 cup of wine, I break out in rash rather than muscle-spasm. There's a genetic factor in Parkison's which makes a person more sensitive to pesticides. In my previous link on PD and hereditary, a twin posted on how his identical twin has PD, and he doesn't, see below link: "My identical twin brother has had Parkinson's for 14 years or so and has diskonesia; a side effect from the drugs he takes to manage his parkinsons. As we know identical twins start out from one egg and split into equal parts. Needless to say I don't have Parkinson's and can guarantee I will not get it. My twin brother is confined to his unit where he lives mostly and has cracked 9 ribs as well as his sturnum with the many falls caused by parkinsons." http://www.caring.com/questions/parkinsons-disease-hereditary Here's an excerpt from WebMD: "The UCLA researchers also found that people with a common variant of the ALDH2 gene are particularly vulnerable to these ALDH-inhibiting pesticides, according to a university news release. People with the variant are two to six times more likely to develop Parkinson's than those without the variant when exposed to the pesticides. The levels at which the pesticides inhibit ALDH are much lower than those at which they are currently used, according to the study in the Feb. 5 online issue of the journal Neurology ... "These pesticides are pretty ubiquitous, and can be found in our food supply and are used in parks and golf courses and in pest control inside buildings and homes." http://www.webmd.com/parkinsons-disease/news/20140203/more-pesticides-linked-to-parkinsons-risk From the below link: "According to the Parkinson’s Disease Foundation: Epidemiological research has identified several factors that may be linked to Parkinson’s, including rural living, well water, manganese and pesticides. Some studies have demonstrated that prolonged occupational exposure to certain chemicals is associated with an elevated risk of PD [Parkinson’s disease]. These include the insecticides permethrin and beta-hexachlorocyclohexane (beta-HCH), the herbicides paraquat and 2,4-dichlorophenoxyacetic acid and the fungicide maneb. In 2009, the US Department of Veterans Affairs added Parkinson’s to a list of diseases possibly associated with exposure to Agent Orange.” Separate research has further revealed that ambient exposure to organophosphate pesticides also increased the risk of developing Parkinson’s disease.6 Rotenone and paraquat are two additional pesticides linked to an increased risk of Parkinson's disease, and both are lipophilic, meaning they resist breaking down in water and accumulate in your fat. Both are also known to cross your blood-brain barrier. Dousing our crops with large amounts of glyphosate ��" the active ingredient in Monsanto’s broad-spectrum herbicide Roundup ��" may be another factor in the rising rates of Parkinson’s disease we’re now seeing,7 as these residues are found in all virtually all food containing genetically modified ingredients. " Here is a link that might be useful: Pesticides that trigger PD This post was edited by Strawberryhill on Wed, Oct 8, 14 at 9:39