Exposure to high levels of TCE could increase risk of Parkinson’s disease by 70%

The risk of developing Parkinson’s disease later in life could be increased by up to 70% by drinking water contaminated with the industrial solvent, trichloroethylene (TCE). The researchers said it was, to their knowledge, the first study to assess the association of Parkinson’s disease and exposure to a TCE-contaminated water supply, in a large, population-based cohort.

The study investigated whether the risk of Parkinson’s disease was raised in veterans who served at Camp Lejeune in North Carolina for at least three months between 1975 and 1985. The water supply to the base was contaminated with high levels of TCE, and several other volatile organic compounds (VOC), by leaking underground storage tanks, industrial spills, waste disposal sites and an off-base dry-cleaning business. The authors note that TCE and the related compound tetrachloroethylene are present in up to one-third of US drinking water supplies.