What is malathion?
A. Malathion is an insecticide that has been registered for use in Canada since 1953. It is commonly used to control insects in agriculture, but it is also used worldwide to control mosquito populations. The City of Winnipeg has used malathion for decades to manage their nuisance mosquito problem. Malathion can also be found in products that are used on pets to control ticks and fleas.
Malathion is an insecticide that has been used for many years to fog for mosquito adults, as well as to control a number of other pest insects. The Environmental Protection Agency has a website with toxicology information on the pesticides used to control mosquitoes, www.epa.gov/pesticides/factsheets/skeeters.htm.
Malathion is an insecticide that does not occur naturally. Pure malathion is a colorless liquid, and technical-grade malathion, which contains >90% malathion and impurities in a solvent, is a brownish-yellow liquid that smells like garlic. Malathion is used to kill insects on farm crops and in gardens, to treat lice on humans, and to treat fleas on pets. Malathion is also used to kill mosquitos and Mediterranean fruit flies (medflies) in large outdoor areas.
Malathion is a man-made organophosphate insecticide that is commonly used to control mosquitoes and a variety of insects that attack fruits, vegetables, landscaping plants, and shrubs. It can also be found in other pesticide products used indoors and on pets to control ticks and insects, such as fleas and ants. Malathion is the active ingredient in mosquitocontrol products including Fyfanon and Atrapa. These products contain over 95% malathion and are often applied undiluted. However, they may be diluted with a petroleum solvent similar to kerosene before application, in which case petroleum solvent will make up most of the pesticide solution. Because pesticide products are inherently toxic, no pesticide exposure is risk free. The likelihood of experiencing adverse health effects from exposure to any pesticide, including malathion, depends primarily on the amount of pesticide that a person contacts and the amount of time the person is in contact with that pesticide.
