Children's Health Defense Linda Birnbaum and other scientists say exposure to toxic chemicals has contributed to a rise in autism, and that fluoride and cellphone radiation have potential risks to human health. But will their vision to protect human health by regulating toxic chemicals gain traction? Or will it founder under the weight of disputed evidence, cross-cutting interests and hostile politics?
By Michael Schulson
Growing up in Teaneck, New Jersey, with a brother who had severe intellectual disabilities, Linda Birnbaum developed an interest in the human brain.
She was a formidable child: In 1961, as a teenager, Birnbaum obtained 40 laboratory rats and some synthetic thyroid hormones, and ran a controlled study in her family’s basement, tracking how different chemical combinations affected the rodents’ development.
It was the beginning of a lifelong fascination with chemicals and the body. In her 20s, as a newly minted biology Ph.D. with two young children, Birnbaum began researching how rats metabolized different chemicals, including known toxins.
She joined the federal government in 1979 and rose quickly, eventually overseeing high-profile research at the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), including early studies of so-called forever chemicals, or per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), in the 1980s.
In 2009, Birnbaum took the helm of the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS), one of the world’s premier organizations for the study of toxic chemicals. The role made her one of the most influential toxins experts in the country.
Toxins research is not for the faint of heart. Agencies like NIEHS sometimes fund or conduct research suggesting that a specific chemical is associated with a specific health problem.
Such findings can upset people, and in her nearly 11 years leading NIEHS, Birnbaum developed a reputation as a fighter. She oversaw projects that declared formaldehyde to be a human carcinogen and that warned about harms from the chemical bisphenol A, or BPA, which is used in water bottles and food packaging.
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