A major new study from South African and Swiss researchers has raised serious concerns about the impact of agricultural pesticides on children’s brain development in farming regions. The research, conducted by scientists at the University of Cape Town (UCT) and the Swiss Tropical and Public Health Institute at the University of Basel, suggests that routine, low-level exposure to commonly used farm chemicals may be affecting cognitive functions and emotional regulation in children living near agricultural fields.

The study, published in Environmental Research, forms part of the long-running Child Health Agricultural Pesticide Study (CapSA), one of the most extensive investigations into pesticide exposure among children in Sub-Saharan Africa. Its findings point to an uncomfortable reality: while agriculture is central to South Africa’s economy and food security, children in rural farming regions may be silently paying a developmental price.

Widespread Exposure Among Schoolchildren

Researchers assessed 445 schoolchildren aged nine to 16 from seven schools located in three intensively farmed areas of the Western Cape—the Hex River Valley, Grabouw, and Piketberg—regions dominated by fruit production, table grapes, orchards, and wheat. Data collection took place between 2017 and 2019.

The results were striking. Twelve of the 13 pesticides tested were detected in the children, including widely used chemicals such as chlorpyrifos, pyrethroids, hydroxy-tebuconazole, mancozeb and 2,4-D. Most of these were found in more than 98% of participants.

The concern stems not only from how many pesticides were present but from the specific chemicals identified. Higher average levels of chlorpyrifos, profenfos and pyrethroids were linked to impaired cognitive flexibility and weaker inhibitory control—core brain functions that help children concentrate, follow instructions, regulate impulses and manage behaviour.

These cognitive functions are governed largely by the prefrontal cortex, a region still developing throughout childhood and adolescence. Researchers highlight that this makes young people especially vulnerable to even low-dose environmental toxins.

Echoes of Global Concerns

The study’s findings are consistent with international research. Past investigations by the U.S. National Institutes of Health and articles published in The Lancet Neurology have long associated chronic pesticide exposure with delays or deficits in executive functioning, working memory, attention, and emotional stability.

Executive functioning, in particular, plays a crucial role in learning, social interactions, problem-solving and future academic outcomes. Disruptions at an early stage may have long-term consequences across a child’s lifetime.

Multiple Pathways of Exposure

Children in farming regions face exposure risks that go far beyond direct contact with agricultural work. Unlike urban households, rural homes near farmlands often experience:

Pesticide drift from nearby spraying

Contaminated household dust

Residues in locally grown food and groundwater

Soil contact through outdoor play

Higher hand-to-mouth behaviour

Greater air intake relative to body size

These factors create a layered and persistent exposure environment. UCT researchers note that these children may be interacting with pesticides daily without ever stepping into a field.

South Africa’s Heavy Reliance on Pesticides

South Africa uses more pesticides than any other country in Sub-Saharan Africa, with over 3,000 registered formulations. Many of these are classified internationally as neurotoxicants or endocrine disruptors.

A Western Cape study from 2017 found that farms producing grapes, stone fruit and wheat used up to 96 active ingredients—among them 47 fungicides, 31 insecticides and 18 herbicides. In many farming communities, weak regulation, limited protective gear and insufficient buffer zones around homes mean children often remain exposed even during routine agricultural activities.

Despite high usage rates across the continent, African populations remain significantly underrepresented in global pesticide-health datasets. The CapSA study helps fill this critical research gap.

Call for Urgent Action

The study’s lead investigators stress that pesticide exposure is a “modifiable risk factor.” This means effective regulation, safer farming practices, improved protective measures and stricter enforcement could drastically reduce the threat to children.

Public health experts argue that intervention is especially urgent because the developmental window from late childhood to adolescence is crucial for brain maturation, synaptic pruning and neural reorganisation. Exposures during this period can produce effects that echo throughout adulthood.

A Silent Public Health Crisis

The findings suggest that children living in South Africa’s farming communities may be paying an overlooked price for the nation’s agricultural productivity. While fruit exports and crop production remain pillars of the rural economy, the environmental health of children in these regions has received far less attention.

The CapSA research makes clear that this imbalance can no longer be ignored. As evidence mounts linking everyday pesticide exposure to subtle yet significant neurodevelopmental harm, scientists and public health leaders are calling for immediate policy shifts and stronger protections. Without action, they warn, a generation of children may face preventable challenges affecting their health, education and future opportunities.