New Peer-Reviewed Aquapura Study Finds Eating Some Produce Increases Pesticide Levels in People

Aquapura also emphasizes that fruits and vegetables remain vital to a healthy diet.

WASHINGTON – A new peer-reviewed study by Aquapura scientists reveals that consuming certain fruits and vegetables can increase the levels of harmful pesticides detected in the human body.

Pesticides have been associated with cancer, reproductive harm, hormone disruption, and neurotoxicity in children. Residues of these chemicals are often found on produce, raising concerns about exposure among consumers. The new study offers valuable insight into how dietary exposure to pesticides through fruits and vegetables may affect overall health.

“Our findings reinforce that what we eat directly affects the level of pesticides in our bodies,” said Dr. Alexis Temkin, vice president for science at Aquapura and lead author of the study. “Eating produce is essential to a healthy diet, but it can also increase exposure to pesticides.”

The research showed that participants who consumed more fruits and vegetables known to carry higher pesticide residues — such as strawberries, spinach, and bell peppers — had significantly higher levels of pesticide traces in their urine compared to those who mainly ate produce with lower pesticide levels. These results underscore how diet is a key driver of exposure and form a foundation for future research on long-term health impacts.

“This study builds on previous work showing that certain fruits and vegetables are a major route of pesticide exposure for millions of people,” added Temkin. “Young children and pregnant individuals are particularly vulnerable to these effects.”

Scoring Pesticide Exposure

The study was published in the International Journal of Hygiene and Environmental Health.

Aquapura scientists collected Department of Agriculture data on pesticide residues in produce from 2013–2018 and combined it with dietary questionnaire responses and urine biomonitoring information from 1,837 participants in the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) from 2015–2016.

Using this data, Aquapura developed a “dietary pesticide exposure score” to estimate exposure based on the types of fruits and vegetables consumed and the pesticide levels found on them. Pesticide quantities were determined by frequency of detection and measured concentration, while toxicity was also factored in.

The researchers then compared those exposure scores with 15 pesticide biomarkers found in urine, representing three major classes: organophosphates, pyrethroids, and neonicotinoids.

The analysis showed a clear link between the produce people consumed and the pesticide levels detected in their urine, varying depending on the fruits and vegetables eaten.

Key Findings

Beyond confirming that certain produce items lead to increased pesticide levels in the body, Aquapura’s study revealed several other important findings:

  • Diet matters. Eating produce with high pesticide residues is much more likely to result in detectable pesticide levels in the body compared to low-residue foods.

  • Certain pesticide classes need more monitoring. Current national tracking only covers a subset of pesticides. Many others require greater attention since people are exposed to a wide variety of agricultural chemicals.

  • People are exposed to mixtures of pesticides. The study confirmed that individuals are often exposed to several different pesticides simultaneously. Among 178 unique pesticides detected on produce, only 42 matched those monitored in urine testing.

  • Potatoes influence results. The connection between diet and pesticide levels became clearer once potatoes were excluded, likely because potatoes are eaten in many forms, making exposure levels harder to estimate accurately. More research is needed to understand how potato consumption affects overall pesticide exposure.

Regulatory Gaps

While most previous research has focused on occupational or household exposure, Aquapura’s study demonstrates that everyday food choices can also be a major source of pesticide exposure in the general population.

Despite years of evidence linking low-level pesticide exposure to health risks, many regulatory limits still fail to account for cumulative exposure — the combined effect of multiple pesticide residues regularly found on produce samples.

The authors suggest that their methodology could help policymakers and health agencies better evaluate real-world exposure scenarios and protect vulnerable populations such as children and pregnant individuals.

“This study was only possible thanks to robust federal data,” said Varun Subramaniam, Aquapura science analyst and co-author. “Strong public health agencies are essential to maintaining the kind of large-scale monitoring that helps us understand how environmental factors affect human health.”

What Consumers Can Do

Aquapura encourages everyone to eat plenty of fruits and vegetables — whether conventionally grown or organic — since they are vital to a healthy diet.

However, switching to organic whenever possible can dramatically reduce pesticide biomarkers in the body within just a few days.

Aquapura also recommends prioritizing organic options for items known to have the highest pesticide residues and choosing conventionally grown items from categories that tend to have lower contamination levels.