PEOPLE with high levels of education and demanding careers also have an increased risk of developing Parkinson’s disease, research has suggested.

Scientists at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota, have found that the chances of developing Parkinson’s rise with years of education, or intellectually challenging jobs. The highest risk was found in people who had studied for at least nine years. Miners, machine operators, metalworkers and farmers were less often affected.

The study, published in Neurology, says that the findings do not mean that education or professional achievement cause the condition, but that people in these groups may lead lives that predispose them to the disease, or be more alert to its symptoms: doctors were the most likely to develop the disease.

Jim Maraganore, of the Mayo Clinic team, said: “We’re talking about going from a baseline risk of 2 per cent to develop Parkinson’s disease during a lifetime to a risk of 4 per cent if you are highly educated or a physician, or 1 per cent if you are less educated or more physically active. I wouldn’t change your schooling plans or your occupation based on these findings.”

One potential explanation for the higher rates of Parkinson’s among doctors and more educated individuals could be that these people are more likely to recognise symptoms and seek professional help, and thus be diagnosed earlier.

Another possibility is that genetic or other factors that make people more likely to develop Parkinson’s also enhance the enjoyment they get from education, and thus encourage them to pursue their studies.

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