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Aberdeen, UK (pte006/27.05.2005/09:07) - Scientists have found that those who are exposed to pesticides have a higher risk of developing Parkinson's disease. Almost 3000 people were studied, with the result that farmers and even amateur gardeners should wear protective clothing when spraying pesticides.
The Geoparkinson study was funded by the European Commission http://europa.eu.int/comm/index_en.htm and studied volunteers in Scotland, Italy, Sweden, Romania and Malta. Leader of the team of scientists Anthony Seaton of University of Aberdeen, UK http://www.abdn.ac.uk/deom/aseaton.shtml , said: "It considerably strengthens the case for pesticides being relevant to occupational risk of Parkinson's disease."
Seaton and his team interviewed 767 people who have Parkinson's disease about risk factors and exposure to pesticides. Those who used pesticides more frequently had the disease.
Amateur gardeners with a low exposure were 9 per cent more likely than those who didn't use pesticides to develop Parkinson's. Farmers, who had high exposure, were 43 per cent more likely to develop it.
It was not, however possible to establish which pesticides were responsible for the development of the disease, said David Coggon of the University of Southampton, UK, and chairman of the British government's Advisory Committee on Pesticides. "It's possible that just one or two are causing it, but slipped through the regulatory net," he said.
Other factors in developing Parkinson's are also involved. Someone with the disease in the family is 350 per cent more likely to develop it. Also, being knocked unconscious once increases the risk by 32 per cent, which rises to 174 in those who have suffered knock-outs more than once.
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