New Study Finds Worrisome Pattern of Birth Defects in Fracking Communities

Science has long known that the developing fetus is sensitive to experiences of the mother – alcohol consumption, dietary factors, and mercury exposure are some of the more well-known examples. This sensitivity makes newborn babies an early indicator of something going wrong in the environment of the mother. Unfortunately, a team of researchers found preliminary evidence of something gone wrong when they looked at the patterns of birth defects in newborn babies in Colorado. The researchers found that babies whose mothers lived in close proximity to multiple oil and gas wells were 30% more likely to be born with defects in their heart than babies born to mothers who did not live close to oil and gas wells.

As a public health scientist, this finding raises alarm bells and leads to many questions. This is the first published peer reviewed study realistically examining whether people living near sites where fracking has occurred are experiencing more health impacts. The fact that it found a statistically significant association, is very worrisome especially in combination with early reports of similar findings from a study in Pennsylvania. Although these types of studies can’t tell us definitively that pollution from oil and gas wells is the cause of the elevated birth defects, the findings of this study are like a flashing light saying something is going on here and we need to take action to make sure our most vulnerable are protected. In fact, it is studies like this one that have ultimately led to the understanding we now have of how to protect pregnant women and ensure healthier babies.

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What science is the study based on?

This study uses well established methods to examine the relationship between where a mom lives while she’s pregnant and the health of her baby. It also builds upon research that has found that women exposed to chemicals, such as benzene and solvents, and air pollution are at greater risk of the types of birth defects analyzed in this study.

How did the researchers tackle the problem?

The team of public health scientists, from the Colorado School of Public Health and Brown University, used sophisticated mapping and statistical methods to look at how the rates of different birth defects and conditions compared between women who lived in an area (10 mile radius of their homes) with a high amount of oil and gas wells, women who lived in area with less oil and gas development, and women who lived in an area with no oil and gas development. This classification took into account how close the woman lived to a well and also how many wells there were. Therefore, the women who were in the “high category” were both living at shorter distances to wells and also had more wells in the vicinity of their homes. In the babies, the researchers looked at three different types of birth defects (problems with the heart, nervous system, and mouth) and two different conditions (preterm birth and low birth weight) that can be linked to health problems for children.

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http://switchboard.nrdc.org/blogs/mrotkinellman/new_study_finds_worrisome_patt.html