6/26/2006 (USA Today) - People who reported being exposed to
pesticides before 1982 had a 70% higher incidence of Parkinson's
disease 10 to 20 years later than those who weren't exposed, a study
by Harvard scientists finds.
Of 143,325 people who took part in an American Cancer Society study
in 1982, 7,864 reported pesticide exposure and 413 were later
diagnosed with Parkinson's disease.

Researchers found that those who reported exposure, after adjusting
for age, sex, and other risk factors for Parkinson's disease, had a
significantly higher rate of contracting the disease.

The main limitation, says Alberto Ascherio, a Harvard professor of
nutrition and epidemiology who led the study, is that "we really
don't know which chemicals people used and how strong the exposure
was."

The risk was similar in farmers and non-farmers, which would mean
people also were exposed to pesticides in their homes and gardens,
Ascherio says.

Parkinson's disease is a chronic, progressive degenerative brain
disorder. It causes shaking, rigidity and slowness of movement.
There is no cure, although some treatments are available.

An estimated 1.5 million Americans have Parkinson's. The condition
usually develops after the age of 65 but 15% of patients are
diagnosed under age 50.

Actor Michael J. Fox, whose foundation financed the study, was
diagnosed with Parkinson's in 1991.

Ascherio says it's possible that genetic variation will explain why
some people can metabolize and excrete pesticides easily and others
cannot. But he says more research is necessary.

Elizabeth Weise