The world-renowned scientist Dr. Theo Colborn, one of the leading experts on the health and environmental impacts of chemicals used to extract oil and gas, has died at the age of 87. In 2003, at the age of 76, Colborn founded the Endocrine Disruption Exchange to disseminate scientific evidence related to endocrine disruptors, chemicals that interfere with development. In 2010, Theo Colborn appeared on Democracy Now! and spoke about her research on endocrine disruptors and the chemicals used to extract natural gas through fracking.

Dr. Theo Colborn: “These are the chemicals that can get into the pregnant woman and enter the womb, while her baby is developing in her womb, and alter how those children are born. And this is our big concern today, because we’re facing major pandemics of endocrine-driven disorders — simple things like ADHD, autism, diabetes, obesity, early testicular cancer, endometriosis. These are all endocrine-driven disorders that we’re very concerned about. And these products are being injected underground, for centuries, maybe, to stay before they surface, and also coming back up.”

Colborn died on December 14 at home in Paonia, Colorado.