Australia’s federal pesticide regulator has backed calls from researchers for further study into a potential link between the use of pesticides and increased risk of Parkinson’s disease. Australian Pesticides and Veterinary Medicines Authority (APVMA) spokeswoman Dr Raj Bhula told SBS the organisation believed further research was justified, but said there was not any: “clear-cut evidence that links the two together”. The call comes following the discovery of a Parkinson’s disease cluster in a barley, chickpea and lentil farming region of north-west Victoria. Researchers from Monash University and the Florey Institute of Neuroscience and Mental Health found elevated rates of the disease in four neighbouring council areas. In Buloke, the prevalence was 78 per cent higher than the Victorian average. It was 76 per cent higher in Horsham, 57 per cent higher in Northern Grampians and 34 per cent higher in Yarriambiack. The study’s co-author Darshini Ayton says the results came as a surprise. "We were quite shocked that this cluster existed ... we didn't expect to find a cluster of four LGAs neighbouring each other with significantly higher rates of Parkinson's disease," she said.
The research team cross-referenced data on Parkinson’s drug consumption in each council area, controlling for age, with Bureau of Statistics data on agricultural output. Ms Ayton said the research did not prove pesticides used in pulse production caused Parkinson’s disease, but did suggest a correlation.
Source: SBS, 11 April 2016
http://www.sbs.com.au/news/article/2016/04/11/parkinsons-cluster-prompt…
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