title: Pesticide exposure and risk for Parkinson's disease.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Chronic, low-dose exposure to pesticides is suspected to increase the risk for Parkinson's disease (PD), but data are inconclusive.
  
  
  METHODS
  We prospectively examined whether individuals exposed to pesticides have higher risk for PD than those not exposed. The study population comprised participants in the Cancer Prevention Study II Nutrition Cohort, a longitudinal investigation of US men and women initiated in 1992 by the American Cancer Society. Follow-up surveys were conducted in 1997, 1999, and 2001. The 143,325 individuals who returned the 2001 survey and did not have a diagnosis or symptoms of PD at baseline (1992) were included in the analyses.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Exposure to pesticides was reported by 7,864 participants (5.7%), including 1,956 farmers, ranchers, or fishermen. Individuals exposed to pesticides had a 70% higher incidence of PD than those not exposed (adjusted relative risk, 1.7; 95% confidence interval, 1.2-2.3; p = 0.002). The relative risk for pesticide exposure was similar in farmers and nonfarmers. No relation was found between risk for PD and exposure to asbestos, chemical/acids/solvents, coal or stone dust, or eight other occupational exposures.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  These data support the hypothesis that exposure to pesticides may increase risk for PD. Future studies should seek to identify the specific chemicals responsible for this association.
authors.affiliation: Department of Nutrition, Harvard School of Public Health, Boston, MA, USA. aascheri@hsph.harvard.edu
authors.forename: Alberto
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Ascherio
authors.forename: Honglei
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Chen
authors.forename: Marc G
authors.initials: MG
authors.lastname: Weisskopf
authors.forename: Eilis
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: O'Reilly
authors.forename: Marjorie L
authors.initials: ML
authors.lastname: McCullough
authors.forename: Eugenia E
authors.initials: EE
authors.lastname: Calle
authors.forename: Michael A
authors.initials: MA
authors.lastname: Schwarzschild
authors.forename: Michael J
authors.initials: MJ
authors.lastname: Thun
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D015331:Cohort Studies; D004305:Dose-Response Relationship, Drug; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009747:Nutritional Physiological Phenomena; D010302:Parkinson Disease, Secondary / Q000139:chemically induced* / Q000453:epidemiology*; D010575:Pesticides / Q000633:toxicity*; D012306:Risk; D014481:United States / Q000453:epidemiology
chemical_list: D010575:Pesticides