Increased risks for Parkinsons disease have been linked to some solvents. Parkinsons disease is a progressive, degenerative central nervous system disorder that typically affects motor skills and speech, among other functions and, while not fatal, complications can be deadly. The cause is unknown and there is no cure.

Samuel M. Goldman, M.D., M.P.H., of The Parkinsons Institute in Sunnyvale, California, and colleagues, conducted a so-called discordant twin pair design study involving 99 pairs of twins. The study was conducted to determine if exposure to specific solvents is linked to increased risks for Parkinsons disease. Participant interviews involved task-specific and lifetime occupation and hobby questions, said Medical Xpress. The study was published in the Annals of Neurology.

The researchers found that exposure to trichloroethylene (TCE) was associated with a significantly increased risk of Parkinsons disease and saw a trend for significance for exposure to the chemicals perchloroethylene (PERC) and carbon tetrachloride (CCl4). Although the present work focused on occupational exposures, solvents are ubiquitous in the environment, and this is particularly true for those implicated in this studyTCE, PERC, and CCl4, the authors wrote, according to Medical Xpress. Our findings require replication in other populations with well-characterized exposures, but the potential public health implications are considerable, the team authored.

Weve also written that over the past several years, the agricultural pesticide paraquat has been linked to Parkinsons, posing a risk to agricultural workers who toil in fields where the pesticide is sprayed, as well as to people living near the fields.

Other research revealed that people exposed at their workplaces to ziram, maneb, and paraquat tripled their risk of Parkinsons; workplace exposure to both ziram and paraquat nearly doubled Parkinsons risk; and people who worked with either paraquat or the pesticide rotenone were 2.5 times likelier to develop Parkinsons disease.

Another study found that some medications, notably the amphetamines Benzedrine or Dexedrine, used to treat attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and help patients achieve more defined focus and increase clarity and awareness, could also place those patients at risk for Parkinsons disease.

We recently wrote that another study found an association with glyphosate, the active ingredient in Monsatos Roundup, and Parkinsons disease and Parkinsons-related brain disorders. According to a report from the Organic Authority, Roundup is the best-selling pesticide in the world and is the companion chemical application to many of the companys genetically modified seeds including corn, soy, canola and cotton.

According to Digital Journal, this is just the latest study to find a link between glyphosate and Parkinsons-like disorders. For example, a 2011 report published in the journal Parkinsonism Related Disorders, detailed the case of a 44-year-old women with Parkinsons-like symptoms after sustaining long-term chemical exposure to glyphosate for three years as a worker in a chemical factory.

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Higher Parkinson’s Risk Linked to Certain Solvents