‘My right side was paralysed, I was so sick’: the pesticide poisonings in Brazil that lead back to the UK

Investigation uncovers how chemicals like diquat, banned in the UK but legal to export, are causing health problems in the global south

Valdemar Postanovicz was at home after a day tending to his tobacco crop when his limbs seized up. “All of the right side of my body was paralysed. I couldn’t feel my foot and my hand. My mouth twisted to the right,” he says.

He feared it was a stroke. In fact, he was suffering symptoms of acute pesticide poisoning. Postanovicz, 45, had absorbed Reglone, a powerful herbicide based on the chemical diquat. “It was only one time in my life, but I felt so sick,” he says.

Topics

‘I’m at a loss’: My boyfriend of nearly 10 years is naming his elderly parents as beneficiaries and giving them power of attorney. Am I right to be upset?

“I own the house we live in and he pays me a small amount of rent every month to help cover my mortgage and utilities.”
MarketWatch - 1d
Barry Keoghan hits back at ‘inhumane’ abuse and harassment of his family: ‘I can only take so much’

Irish actor says people have been ‘sitting outside’ the homes of his grandmother and two-year-old son after his reported split from singer Sabrina Carpenter. Barry Keoghan has deactivated his ...
The Guardian - 2d
'I lost a year of my life when stalker moved to UK'

Stephanie Hill, a former Miss England, says her stalker sent hundreds of messages.
BBC News - 3d
Must I Share My Story?

A reader asks whether she needs to let her new colleagues, most of whom work remotely, know that she is undergoing chemotherapy treatments.
The New York Times - 3d
‘I hate to be the interfering mother-in-law’: My son bought a house with his wife — so why is his father-in-law on the deed?

“I asked him if he was also on the deed. He said yes.”
MarketWatch - 4d
How do I make sure my retirement accounts go to my wife, and then my kids, when I die?

Planning and proper documentation is required if your wishes are to be carried out
MarketWatch - 4d
What if the UK isn’t actually the sick man of Europe?

Britain’s illness-related inactivity crisis looks increasingly like a mirage
Financial Times - 5d
My Dog Had Trust Issues. So Did I.

We needed a steady presence in our lives. Enter Kevin.
The New York Times - 6d
How Can I Show My Boyfriend My Parents’ Filthy Home?

A reader dreads the thought of her partner seeing her squalid childhood home, but being honest with her parents about her embarrassment is a nonstarter.
The New York Times - Dec. 4

‘My right side was paralysed, I was so sick’: the pesticide poisonings in Brazil that lead back to the UK

Topics

Related

‘I’m at a loss’: My boyfriend of nearly 10 years is naming his elderly parents as beneficiaries and giving them power of attorney. Am I right to be upset?

Barry Keoghan hits back at ‘inhumane’ abuse and harassment of his family: ‘I can only take so much’

'I lost a year of my life when stalker moved to UK'

Must I Share My Story?

‘I hate to be the interfering mother-in-law’: My son bought a house with his wife — so why is his father-in-law on the deed?

How do I make sure my retirement accounts go to my wife, and then my kids, when I die?

What if the UK isn’t actually the sick man of Europe?

My Dog Had Trust Issues. So Did I.

How Can I Show My Boyfriend My Parents’ Filthy Home?

More from The Guardian

No pardons for prison torturers, says Syrian rebel leader

FBI director Christopher Wray will resign before Trump takes office

Trawl the sea or mine for metals? Pacific nations wrestle with how to protect oceans - and livelihoods

Ukraine war briefing: Kyiv confirms Russian gains around Pokrovsk

Hannah Kobayashi found safe after disappearance prompted massive search