Parkinson's disease has become the fastest-growing neurodegenerative disorder in the world. New medical evidence shows that only 5% to 15% of cases have a purely genetic cause, and that environmental exposure, including to pesticides and other chemical pollution, is contributing to a Parkinson's epidemic.
With an aging population and no known cure, neurologists are increasingly calling for environmental action to help stem the disease. Yet such action is lacking in the United States.
Paraquat, a highly toxic herbicide linked to Parkinson's, remains legal and widely used in agricultural areas despite being banned in more than 70 countries, including in the EU and China, which export the chemical to the U.S.
A team of University of Florida (UF) student journalists immersed for four months with Parkinson's patients, their physicians, and researchers to report on the consequences on inaction, and conducted a global analysis to show the unequal burden of chemical exposure around the world. The student journalists were advised by Cynthia Barnett, director of Climate and Environment Reporting Projects at UF.
Photo caption: Parkinson's patient Melanie Oliver holds a photo of her younger self from her days working at Disney World, where she describes having been exposed to multiple pesticides during her career as a gardener. Image by Kairi Lowery/WUFT News. United States.
