Home › Research › Risk factors
County-Level Ecological Association Between Glyphosate Exposure and Chronic Disease Mortality in Midwestern US Agricultural Communities
Egbuchiem Alex N, Ezeamii Victor C. Cureus, 2026-05-14
Topic: Risk, prevention and care in population studies
Glyphosate is widely used in the United States (US) agriculture, particularly in regions with intensive crop production. Concerns have been raised regarding potential long-term health effects associated with environmental exposure. Chronic diseases remain a leading cause of mortality in the US, particularly in agricultural and rural communities. To examine the ecological association between county-level glyphosate use and chronic disease mortality in Midwestern US agricultural communities. This ecological panel study used county-level mortality data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) Wide-ranging Online Data for Epidemiologic Research (WONDER) Multiple Cause of Death files and pesticide use estimates from the United States Geological Survey Pesticide National Synthesis Project. The study included counties across 12 Midwestern states from 1999 to 2020. Age-adjusted mortality rates for cancer, heart disease, diabetes, Alzheimer's disease, kidney disease, and chronic respiratory disease were analyzed. The primary exposure was log-transformed glyphosate use scaled per 1,000 kg and lagged by three years. County and year fixed effects regression models were applied. Higher three-year lagged glyphosate use was significantly associated with increased heart disease mortality at the county level (β = 5.04; p < 0.001), indicating that increases in glyphosate exposure were associated with modest increases in county-level heart disease mortality rates. No significant associations were observed for the other chronic disease outcomes. This study highlights a population-level association between glyphosate use and heart disease mortality in Midwestern counties. Continued monitoring and research using individual-level data are warranted.
Key findings
- Concerns have been raised regarding potential long-term health effects associated with environmental exposure.
- Higher three-year lagged glyphosate use was significantly associated with increased heart disease mortality at the county level (β = 5.04; p < 0.001), indicating that increases in glyphosate exposure were associated with modest increases in county-level heart disease mortality rates.
- No significant associations were observed for the other chronic disease outcomes.
Why it matters
This county-level study found higher three-year lagged glyphosate use was associated with increased heart disease mortality, but no significant associations were observed for the other chronic disease outcomes, including Alzheimer's disease. It reports no significant link to Alzheimer's disease and does not test any treatment, cure, or prevention.
New to this subject? Start with our plain-English guide: Risk factors, ranked →
Study details
- Evidence strengthLow
How this study scored 28/100
Published in a peer-reviewed journal. Scored zero for study design, sample size, effect reported, studied in people and randomised / blinded because the record does not state it. We have no data on senior author's track record, so that was left out: it earned 27 of the 96 points we could judge it on, which is 28 out of 100.
| Component | Points | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Journal tier | 7 / 10 | Tier 3 — peer-reviewed journal (Cureus) |
| Journal's citation record | 1 / 4 | Cureus: journal h-index 131 (OpenAlex, 2026-10-29) |
| Study design | 0 / 12 | No study design recorded — scores zero, not guessed (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Strength of evidence | 1 / 5 | Rated “low” in our summary |
| Peer-review validation | 10 / 10 | Peer-reviewed. Published as an article in a named peer-reviewed journal. |
| How recent | 5 / 5 | 2026 — within 1 year(s) of the newest study here |
| Sample size | 0 / 4 | Participant count not stated — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Effect reported | 0 / 3 | No effect size reported — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Studied in people | 0 / 3 | Not stated whether this was studied in people — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Randomised / blinded | 0 / 2 | No randomisation or blinding stated — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Times cited | 0 / 7 | Cited 0 times (OpenAlex, 2026-10-10) |
| Citations per year | 0 / 5 | 0.0 citations a year over 2 year(s) since 2026 |
| Impact for its field and year | 0 / 6 | Cited 0.0× the average for papers of its field and year (OpenAlex FWCI) |
| Cited by studies here | 0 / 6 | No other study in this library cites it |
| Still being cited | 0 / 4 | Cited 0 times in 2024–2026 (2026 still in progress; OpenAlex) |
| Senior author's track record | — / 4 | OpenAlex's profile for last-listed author Victor C Ezeamii holds only 6 work(s), too few to judge a track record — left out of this score |
| Institution's track record | 0 / 3 | University of Nebraska Medical Center: institution h-index 666 (OpenAlex) |
| Multi-centre collaboration | 1 / 3 | OpenAlex lists 2 institution(s) in 1 country |
| Indexed in PubMed | 2 / 2 | Indexed in PubMed (PMID 42131631) |
| Free to read | 0 / 2 | Behind a paywall — scores zero |
| Points | 27 / 96 | Scored on 19 of 20 parts. We have no data for the rest, so they are left out: 27 of the 96 points we could judge it on is 28 out of 100. |
| Total | 28 / 100 | — |
What each of these 20 components measures, and what this score is not →
Read the original
Full text: free to read — OpenAlex lists this copy as free to read: the link above (checked 6 Feb 1020).
Cite this study APA, Vancouver, BibTeX · download .bib or .ris
Built from the record alzhub holds for this paper, not looked up. Volume, issue and page numbers are not held in the record. Check the citation against the original before you use it.
APA 7th
Egbuchiem Alex, N., & Ezeamii Victor, C. (2026). County-Level Ecological Association Between Glyphosate Exposure and Chronic Disease Mortality in Midwestern US Agricultural Communities. Cureus. https://doi.org/10.7759/cureus.106908
Vancouver
Egbuchiem Alex N, Ezeamii Victor C. County-Level Ecological Association Between Glyphosate Exposure and Chronic Disease Mortality in Midwestern US Agricultural Communities. Cureus. 2026. doi:10.7759/cureus.106908. PMID: 42131631.
BibTeX
@article{egbuchiemalex2026-42131631,
author = {Egbuchiem Alex, N. and Ezeamii Victor, C.},
title = {{County-Level Ecological Association Between Glyphosate Exposure and Chronic Disease Mortality in Midwestern US Agricultural Communities}},
journal = {Cureus},
year = {2026},
doi = {10.7759/cureus.106908},
pmid = {42131631},
url = {https://doi.org/10.7759/cureus.106908}
}
Related studies in Risk factors
Also tagged “delirium”
858 studies in the library carry the topic tag “delirium”; these are this study's neighbours in a fixed, alphabetical-by-hash tour of them, not the closest in content. All 858 tagged studies.