Bijdrage subcom­missie van volks­ge­zondheid over de gedach­ten­wis­seling met professor Claudio BASSETTI van de European Brain Council over neuro­lo­gische gezondheid

Anja Hazekamp (PvdD):

Thank you for coming professor Bassetti.

I have in addition to what Tilly said some environmental questions.

I would like to focus this question on the link between chemicals, notably pesticides and neurological health. There are strong and growing indications that persons with a past history of working over a long time with chemical substances, such as growers who work with pesticides, are at greater risk of developing diseases that damage the nervous system, such as Parkinson’s disease and Alzheimer’s disease. The same is true for people who live near fields with heavy pesticide use. We see a very worrying increase in the occurrence of Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s diseases in the Netherlands, especially in highly intensive agricultural areas.

Already in 2021, the Dutch national Institute for Public Health and the Environment, the RIVM, commends improving the relevant data requirements and testing guidelines. That is because the data requirements for active ingredients in pesticides do not include standard information regarding the effects on the nervous system.

This lack of adequate testing has huge repercussions. Take for instance glyphosate, a very controversial herbicide, that has been approved for use in the European Union for another 10 years despite uncertainty over the risk of neurodegenerative diseases. There are urgent calls from scientists, and I want to ask the professor: “How do you assess the relationship between the use of chemicals in agriculture, and the rise in neurological diseases? And how could we better assess and how can we better contain those risks?”