New research out of Michigan State University has found a strong link between loss of smell in farmers and pesticide exposure.
The research followed more than 11,000 farmers over 20 years and found that those who reported high pesticide exposures had a 50% higher chance of a reduced sense of smell.
Losing sense of smell can be one of the early symptoms of Parkinson's disease. Farmers have a higher risk of the disease than the general population.
Honglei Chen heads the research. He said while his study is not directly trying to link pesticide exposure to Parkinson’s, it is trying to understand if pesticides cause the disease or simply exacerbate existing problems.
“Studies have linked pesticide exposures to Parkinson’s but it’s not clear when, where, and how were pesticides involved in this process.”
Chen said the study hopes to better understand some of the factors that may lead to Parkinson's.
“It’s fairly difficult just to have a snapshot late in life about the environmental exposure and try to link to the development of the disease.”
He said his research will continue to follow the farmers and see if they eventually develop Parkinson’s disease.