FORE!
This is Sandra Tsing Loh with the Loh Down on Science.
Golf courses need pesticides to maintain lush playing greens. Pesticide exposure has been linked to Parkinson’s disease – a brain disorder affecting movement. Could living near a golf course put your health in the rough?
Enter Brittany Krzyzanowski and team. They analyzed TWENTY-FIVE years of medical records from over five-thousand adults. They mapped home addresses, water sources, AND proximity to dozens of golf courses.
Results? Parkinson’s risk MORE THAN DOUBLED for residents living within ONE mile of a golf course. Homes sharing groundwater with golf courses had EVEN higher odds!
This study points to drinking water or air as pesticide exposure routes. The researchers suggest stronger safeguards to reduce risk of Parkinson’s.
Hole-in-one? Maybe not for your health!
Reference: Krzyzanowski, B., Mullan, A. F., Dorsey, E. R., Chirag, S. S., Turcano, P., Camerucci, E., Bower, J. H., & Savica, R. (2025). Proximity to golf courses and risk of Parkinson disease. JAMA Network Open, 8(5), e259198. https://doi.org/10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2025.9198