The use of pesticides in homes and gardens may lead to increased risk of contracting Parkinson’s disease, according to a study presented on Friday at a meeting of the American Academy of Neurology. Lorene Nelson of the Stanford University School of Medicine and colleagues found that people who had been exposed to pesticides in the home were twice as likely to develop Parkinson’s as people not exposed. The study, which is likely to be controversial, is the first to show that home pesticide exposure may lead to the disease, though other studies have suggested that exposure to pesticides at work may pose a risk.
