Switzerland is investigating whether exposure to pesticides increases the risk of Parkinson’s disease among farmers. While Parkinson’s is recognised as an occupational disease for farmers abroad. Switzerland, however, lacks key data to draw firm conclusions. In Germany, farmers who have used pesticides for more than 100 days during their working lives and later develop Parkinson’s disease are entitled to financial compensation. The disease is classified there as an occupational illness, as it is in Italy and France. “Large long-term studies from France and the United States clearly show a link,” says Samuel Fuhrimann, a researcher on pesticide exposure at the Swiss Tropical and Public Health Institute. Together with a major health insurer and other researchers, he is now examining whether similar patterns can be identified in Switzerland. Reassurance for helicopter spraying in Valais Concerns extend beyond farmers. In canton Valais, some parents worry about recurrent respiratory ...
