Eliciting the gender income influences on household's food security in west africa.

Women economic potential can be used to reduce household's food insecurity in sub-Saharan Africa. This study analyzed the influence of gender on household's food security through the household's income in North-Benin. We selected 300 households using a multistage sampling technique. Data were collected using a questionnaire during direct interviews. Data included the households' socioeconomic characteristics, their experiences-based Food Insecurity Scale, women and men income level. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics and generalized structural equation modeling. The findings show that women-headed households (WHH) were less exposed to food insecurity than men-headed households (MHH). Moreover, the increasing of women income level reduced the exposure of households to food insecurity, because the increase in the income level of women stimulated the men income level. Women income also contributed more to household food expenses than men income. However, the increasing of men income level exposed the households to food insecurity. These results highlight the importance of women's empowerment in addressing household food insecurity in African's developing countries. The findings also help policy makers to improve their knowledge for better decision making on household food security.

Exposure of children to glyphosate in Morocco: Urinary levels and predictors of exposure.

Glyphosate is one of the most frequently used organophosphorus plant protection products worldwide, and has recently been classified as probably carcinogenic to humans by the International Agency for Research and Cancer (IARC). We aimed to evaluate the urinary levels of glyphosate and its metabolite aminomethylphosphonic acid (AMPA) in Moroccan children, to identify the main predictors and to perform a risk assessment. Data was collected during a cross sectional study of 48 children from an intensive agricultural area. Measurements included a questionnaire on life-style, socio-demographic and herbicide exposures. Urinary glyphosate and AMPA were extracted using solid phase extraction (SPE) and analyzed by liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS). Overall, glyphosate and AMPA were detected in 73% and 75% of urine samples, respectively. The mean concentrations were 0.97 µg L-1 (2.06 µg/gcreatinine) for glyphosate and 0.79 µg L-1 (1.52 µg/gcreatinine) for AMPA. Children younger than 5 years had a higher AMPA and glyphosate urine concentration (mean = 2.24 µg L-1; estimation coefficient (EC) = 1.39; 95% CI: 0.54-2.24) (mean = 4.05 µg L-1; EC = 2.92; 95% CI: 1.68-4.15), respectively, than children aged 6-12. Children living near the pesticide spraying fields (<50 m) had 14.91 µg L-1 and 2.35 µg L-1 more glyphosate and AMPA, respectively, than children living in urban counties (95% CI: 8.14-20.91 for glyphosate and 95% CI: 0.55-4.14 for AMPA). AMPA concentration varied significantly with the source of drinking water, AMPA was higher among children that used water from open water sources (mean = 1.49 µg L-1; EC = 2.98; 95% CI/0.67-5.78) compared to those using water from closed water sources. There were also non-significant associations found, such as total household net income, current parental job description, and dietary intake. With the regard to the health risk assessment, estimated daily intake (EDIs), hazard quotient (HQs), and a hazard index (HI) were calculated. The GMs of EDI were 4.38 and 2.26 µg/kg of body weight BW/day for glyphosate and AMPA, respectively. The HQs were calculated considering 0.5 mg/kg BW/day as an acceptable daily intake (ADI), which EFSA has established as a health-based reference value for both analytes. The value obtained were lower than 1, and therefore, low health risk due to glyphosate and AMPA was expected for the target population under the study. This study provides further evidence on factors associated with glyphosate exposure, especially in developing countries.

Health and ecological risk assessment based on pesticide monitoring in Saïss plain (Morocco) groundwater.

In many countries, including Morocco, groundwater contamination with pesticides such as globally banned organochlorides (e.g., dichlorodiphenyltrichloroethane (DDT)) and some accredited organophosphates and pyrethroids poses ecological and human health risks. To assess these risks, we herein monitored pesticides in Saïss plain groundwater (Morocco) during the summer of 2017 and the winter of 2018 using polar organic chemical integrative samplers. The two types of passive samplers were deployed in 22 traditional wells for 14-20 days and subjected to solid-phase extraction. The extracts were analyzed by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry and liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry using a multiresidue method, and 27 pesticides were detected in total. In the summer campaign, 22 pesticides with individual concentrations ranging from