The national environmental and public health group Beyond Pesticides updated its Pesticide-Induced Diseases Database (PIDD), including over 1,100 study entries, with a relational search feature to address the complex pervasiveness of adverse health effects of pesticides.

This comprehensive database captures the range of diseases linked to pesticides and tracks the latest epidemiologic and real-world exposure using peer-reviewed studies. PIDD is comprised of epidemiologic and laboratory exposure studies and is continually updated to track the emerging findings and trends.

"We created this unique database to fill the gap between pesticides and multiple disease pathways. Pesticide exposure can promote the development of various diseases, many of which are co-occurring. This tool makes it easy for consumers and health officials alike to access scientific resources that bring to light both specific illnesses and a range of illnesses that affect public health from pesticide exposure," Warren Porter, Ph.D., Beyond Pesticides board member and professor emeritus of zoology and environmental toxicology at the University of Wisconsin-Madison.

Why is this database so important? Connections to pesticide exposure are being found in a growing number of studies that evaluate the causes of preventable diseases — including asthma, autism and learning disabilities, birth defects and reproductive dysfunction, endocrine disruption, immune system disorder, brain and nervous system disorders, and several types of cancer. "These links to diseases support an urgent need to shift to toxic?free practices and policies," says Dr. Porter.