Medical students' attitudes about cosmetic pesticides before and after an ecosystem health seminar: a pilot study.

The University of Western Ontario has incorporated ecosystem health as an integral component of its Community Health course for medical students. There is increasing concern regarding the negative health effects of pesticides. The issue of pesticides is, therefore, an obvious topic for the Community Health course. The goal of this pilot study was to compare the attitudes of medical students about cosmetic pesticide use before and after attending a special seminar on that topic. Sixty-three students were surveyed on their opinions before and after the pesticides seminar. After the seminar, the students' attitudes shifted towards a more negative view of unrestrained cosmetic pesticide use. The students also felt that there were greater risks involved with the use of pesticides (P < 0.001) after attending the seminar. The results of this pilot study demonstrate the need and the effectiveness of including ecosystem health topics in medical curricula.