Parkinson’s is the world’s fastest-growing neurological disorder. And in some Australian farming communities, doctors are questioning why so many seem to be getting it.

For years, some farmers and doctors have drawn a link to paraquat – a powerful weedkiller that is still used widely on Australian farms, despite being banned in more than 60 countries, including Britain, China and Brazil.

This month, Australia’s chemical regulator is expected to decide whether paraquat can continue to be used here – after a review that has run since 1997.

Associate Professor Wesley Thevathasan is one of about 50 neurologists who made submissions to that review, calling for paraquat to be banned. But he says the regulator has ignored them – as well as some of the strongest evidence linking exposure to the chemical to Parkinson’s.

Today, Thevathasan on the farmers who fear that paraquat has made them sick, and whether Australia’s regulator is listening.

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Farmer audio courtesy of ABC rural.

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