Table 3 Perceptions about pesticides and pesticide use
among Central Luzon farmers
Pesticides are harmless
Farmers suffer from ill effects, but they attribute these to causes
other than pesticides
Pesticides are harmful only under certain conditions or harm is done
through certain entry points into the body
Pesticides harm only certain types of people – e.g. the old, the
weak, but not those who are ‘immune’
Farmers think they are already taking sufficient precautions
Pesticides are harmful, but precautions do not help; they cause
more harm than good