From Golf Courses to Industrial Solvents: Meet the Researcher Investigating Parkinson's Risk

Exposure to certain environmental contaminants is increasingly recognized as a risk factor for Parkinson’s disease (PD). Air quality plays a significant role in healthy living, and breathing in polluted air over time can lead to serious medical issues. Growing evidence suggests air pollution could be a risk factor in the development of Parkinson’s disease. However, air pollution comes in many forms from different sources, and it is not understood which types of air pollution are the greatest contributors to PD.

Brittany Krzyzanowski, PhD, is analyzing air quality information from across the U.S. to identify the high-risk pollutants associated with PD and where they are most concentrated. She recently completed this analysis as a recipient of the 2024 Clinical Research Training Scholarship in Parkinson’s Disease funded by the Parkinson’s Foundation and the American Brain Foundation, in collaboration with the American Academy of Neurology.

As a health geographer at the Atria Research Institute in New York City, Dr. Krzyzanowski uses her expertise in geospatial research to analyze environmental data to support prevention of future PD cases. Across the U.S., thousands of air quality monitoring stations, operated by federal, state, and local agencies, record the levels of various pollutants in the air.

“Since receiving the grant, I've been digging deeper into which specific air pollutants are most strongly linked to Parkinson's risk, and the picture is becoming clearer,” said Dr. Krzyzanowski. 

Dr. Krzyzanowski and her team used nationwide Medicare data and tested more than a dozen pollutants, including heavy metals, gases and different components of fine particulate matter (PM2.5) to see which were the strongest predictors of PD risk. 

“Two heavy metals — iron and vanadium — along with ozone showed the strongest associations, with weaker but still notable links to formaldehyde and a component of PM2.5 called sulfate. Because heavy metals and ozone are often tied to traffic and industrial emissions, these results point toward specific, modifiable sources of air pollution that public health efforts could target,” she said.

Dr. Krzyzanowski said her current research into air pollutants builds on two related studies that were recently published with the support of the Parkinson’s Foundation. 

Golf Study Findings

The first study, published in JAMA Network Open, found that older adults living within one mile of a golf course had more than double the odds of developing PD compared with people living more than six miles away, with the strongest associations in areas where drinking water came from vulnerable groundwater sources — suggesting pesticide runoff may play a role.

However, the proximity relationship persisted even after Dr. Krzyzanowski and her team accounted for groundwater vulnerability, and it was stronger in denser, urban areas, which points to airborne pesticide drift as a second, independent exposure route.

TCE Study Findings

In another study, published in Neurology, Dr. Krzyzanowski and team found that people living in areas with the highest levels of the industrial solvent trichloroethylene (TCE) had a higher risk of Parkinson's than those in the lowest-exposure areas. The highest TCE levels were concentrated in parts of the Northeast and Midwest, particularly the Rust Belt.

This information could guide future public health policies that reduce exposure to these pollutants, potentially decreasing the incidence of PD in vulnerable communities.

“Together, these studies reinforce a theme that's central to my research: Parkinson's risk isn't just about how much pollution someone is exposed to, but what kind,” said Dr. Krzyzanowski. “I think about this research as a bridge between data and action. It's not enough to say pollution is linked to Parkinson's risk.”

“Policymakers need to know which pollutants, at what levels, and where, so they can prioritize interventions that actually make a difference,” she said. “Whether that means tightening regulations on industrial solvents like TCE, rethinking pesticide use near residential areas or improving air quality monitoring in high-traffic corridors, my hope is that this work gives communities and decision-makers the specificity they need to act.”

Ready to take action? Visit our Advocacy Center to ask your representatives to support the federal ban on Paraquat, a dangerous chemical linked to PD that is still in use today.