How close you live to a golf course impacts your chances of getting Parkinson’s, study shows

Those who live within one mile of a golf course double their risk of developing Parkinson’s disease, new research has suggested.

Chemicals used to maintain fairways and greens in perfect shape may be causing the disease by leaking into water sources or escaping into the atmosphere, according to US researchers.

The scientists from the Barrow Neurological Institute in Arizona examined health data from people living near 139 golf courses in southern Minnesota and western Wisconsin.

They found that people who lived within a mile of a golf course had a 126 per cent higher chance of getting Parkinson’s disease than people who lived more than six miles away.

The study also discovered that the likelihood of developing Parkinson’s disease decreased by 13 per cent for every mile away from the greens, indicating a linear association between the two.

Parkinson’s disease is the world’s second most common neurodegenerative disorder, behind Alzheimer’s disease.

It is a degenerative neurological condition, which means that over time the brain of an individual living with the disease becomes more damaged, according to the NHS.

Around 145,000 people in the UK are affected by Parkinson’s disease, according to charity Parkinson’s UK.

Writing in the journal Jama Network Open, Dr Brittany Krzyzanowski said: “These findings suggest that pesticides applied to golf courses may play a role in the incidence of Parkinson’s disease for nearby residents.

“Public health policies to reduce the risk of groundwater contamination and airborne exposure from pesticides on golf courses may help reduce the risk of Parkinson’s disease in nearby neighbourhoods.”

The research also found that people who get their drinking water from water service areas with a golf course had nearly double the odds of Parkinson’s compared to those getting drinking water from water service areas without a golf course.

Pesticides such as paraquat and rotenone have been shown to induce Parkinson-like neurodegeneration, the study said.

In the UK and the EU, the use of pesticides is strictly controlled, and paraquat is banned due to concerns about their wider health and environmental impacts, Dr Katherine Fletcher, Research Lead at Parkinson’s UK, said. The risk for most people in the UK is therefore “extremely low”, she said.

The US researchers suggested public health policies aimed at reducing the risk of groundwater contamination and airborne exposure from pesticides on golf courses may help reduce the risk of the disease in nearby neighbourhoods.

According to the NHS, symptoms of Parkinson’s usually develop after the age of 50. However, for one in 20 people affected by the disease, symptoms may appear when they’re under the age of 40.

Dr Fletcher added: “Parkinson’s is complex. The causes of the condition are unclear and are likely to involve both genetic and environmental factors. Many studies have investigated whether pesticides increase the risk of developing Parkinson’s in different populations around the world.

“The results have been varied, but overall suggest that exposure to pesticides may increase the risk of the condition. However, the evidence is not strong enough to show that pesticide exposure directly causes Parkinson’s.

“This study supports the association between pesticides and Parkinson’s. However, it’s quite reductive and doesn’t take into account how someone might have been exposed to pesticides at their workplace or whether they have a genetic link to the condition.”