From a public health perspective, nitrates cause serious problems to human beings. Among the cases that have been reported, one of the most serious diseases derived from the ingestion of nitrates and nitrites is methemoglobinemia or blue children's disease, a pathology that mainly affects babies, since it causes an absence of oxygen in the blood.
▶ The ingestion of these substances is also related to the development of malignant cancerous cells in the lymphatic system in adults. It is considered that there are more cases related to the intoxication of synthetic fertilizers, such as the high mortality of newborns, whose mothers were exposed or in contact with these chemical products.
▶ Credits: dw. – [Image of Public Domain]
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Research has reported that most of the malformations affecting the central nervous system, bone and hormonal glands are associated with the excessive use of pesticides and fertilizers in agriculture.
For this reason, the scientific community proposes the possibility of minimizing the excessive use of synthetic fertilizers, in order to have an optimal balance in our environment, among the proposals is to implement certain organic products that do not cause negative effects on the environment and also favor the growth, development and productivity of crops and present benefits to the soil.
In multiple research works, it is proposed that the incorporation of biofertilizers and organic fertilizers (manures, composts, vermicomposts, soil amendments, among others) for fertilization of agricultural soils, is a practice that has regained importance in recent years worldwide, so they represent a reliable and sustainable alternative.
From the ecological point of view, there has been an increasing concern to promote this type of agroecological practices that are in tune with environmental protection, taking into account that the use of organic fertilizers improves the conditions of soils that have been deteriorated by the excessive use of agrochemicals and overexploitation, and that organic fertilizers are traditionally made by directly incorporating organic materials (manure, domestic waste from fruits and vegetables, dry agricultural waste) available in the production units.
NOTE: Reference material.