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About The Battalion. (College Station, Tex.) 1893-current | View Entire Issue (Sept. 29, 1986)
Monday, September 29, 1986/The Battalion/Page 5 ,ead pollution, alcoholism xe$ linked, A&M professor says / I ive for other higher By Paige Hinkle Reporter \ Texas A&M psychology profes- *1 • rh* T. 2 [has found evidence linking high n , v • •. els of environmental pollutants in nfljcting sides of the j bloodstream to h i gh H i eV el s of al- , , , mol intake in a study on laboratory ence argued about lu s 7 7 ts will affect thegtiil ip,. j ac ^ Nation said his research location and whefc ^ there is a mo i ecu i ar and answer to Texas iieiM av j ora ] |j n p between lead pollut- f fland alcoholism. S u ( ?L a _“‘ n f “lN’ati on said his research does not jove that high lead levels are the se of alcoholism in humans, be- se alcoholism is an extraordinar- || complex disorder with many de- ablishment of pari g as a new form of [ jorters, howetti rat pari-mutuel ttract organized cm| m 3itsB iate went on, man)[e;i|^ owever| Nation said, if it is bi believed the deliati be addressed only gically possible that someone ild be an alcoholic, high lead lev in the body could contribute to alcoholism. “My guess is that lead and cad- ium toxicity merely aggravate an listing condition,” Nation said. In the studies, he said, laboratory [ts exposed to dietary lead con- med larger amounts of a 10 per- [nt alcohol solution under stressful mditions than did rats not exposed >r Texans ■ Nation said that although factory with lead and likely to have compromise looking to prop® e side of the debate forum debate is s 20. The topic fori whether states havt|| e having nuclear»t| their boundaries, concern workers who work dmium are ed Legislature, i 6 seniors, convene npion causes thataii er residents Igh levels of these chemicals in , . . | leir bodies, the average person to- 1K nil IIP i ^ as times more lead in his ^IwIVUIUI V jdy than people did years ago. Lead, which is the No. 1 cnemical Texas'fa ^ utant * n l he nation, is environ mentally distributed through auto- lobile emissions, Nation said. Even- lally, the lead gets into the aquifers tithe earth and is transferred every- of the Silver-Hairdl here trough these water systems, k said. So lead works its way into he food supply and people eat it, lation said. He said cadmium can be found in ictories involved with electroplat- ig and galvanizing. Cadmium also n be found in cigarette tobacco, he .■ere elected in ballot is year in 28 district 11 members arert it least 60 years old p was organized!) icerns of the elderk lakers for consider egular session, cing the new forum 'bite earlier said lie means that "senioi iow have the oppor blish legislative prio as lawmakers.’’ said, so heavy smokers are likely to take in higher amounts of it than non-smokers. Nation said this research is part of a broad area known as behavioral toxicology. He said it has received at tention in the United States for the last decade, although it was being studied in the Soviet Union 30 or 40 years ago. The primary concerns of behav ioral toxicology, Nation said, are the effects of environmental contami nation on systems expressing emo tional and motor behaviors. He said behavioral toxicology also studies the effects of chemicals on learning and memory because researchers re alize that chemical pollutants can af fect people without showing obvious signs. If it is biologically possible that someone could be an alcoholic, high lead levels in the body could contrib ute to the alcoholism. Dr. Jack Nation, an A&M psychology professor. Nation said researchers now have to determine if increased alcohol consumption is truly stress-me diated. One of the major human prob lems related to elevated anxiety lev els is alcoholism, Nation said, be cause alcohol can be consumed in an effort to keep anxiety levels within manageable limits. However, he said, alcohol is unique because it has anxiety-reduc ing properties and caloric prop- jack Nations erties. So, he said, behavioral and biochemical investigations are being conducted to determine whether an imals consume alcohol as a food source or to reduce anxiety. “If these studies help us under stand the molecular nature of alco hol intake, perhaps, pharmacologi cally speaking, we will be able to control alcohol abuse through chem ical means,” Nation said. He said a team of British investi gators conducted a massive study in 1982 in which it found a strong posi tive correlation between high Blood- lead levels and large amounts of al cohol consumed on a daily basis. However, Nation said, the investi gators concluded that excessive alco hol intake resulted in a breakdown of the intestinal walls, allowing lead to be absorbed easily into the system. In other words, he said, the investi gators concluded that high amounts of alcohol could lead to high amounts of lead in the body. If both groups of researchers are correct, Nation said, a bad situation would be present because the effects of high lead levels and high alcohol consumption would form a vicious circle. Barett Shoes N m y S’-*** ***• ^ A Sale Take an EXTRA ^ 407. OFF on aft sale price an ai Mk shoes Ma saletags- Culpepper Plaza 1723 South Texas Avenue College Station 693-4423 MasterCard, Visa or Choice. Open evenings and open Sunday 12:30 to 6 p.m. Warped WE NOW RETURN JO THE WRPD milXOfWm (MACHINEGUNS ZOMBIES." I'M REAP/ NOW FOR M REVENGE ATTACK ON THE MOUNTAIN FORTRESS... by Scott McCullar Waldo by Kevin Thomas I'M 60IMG OUT TO WHERE I PARKED W CAR! House’s tax increase bill reaches Senate AUSTIN (AP) — As the House- approved $869.2 million tax in crease plan reached the Senate on Sunday, Lt. Gov. Bill Hobby said the Legislature’s budget-balancing spe cial session could end by mid-week. “I think it’s a good bill,” Hobby said following a five-minute meeting in which the Senate formally re ceived the tax bill from the House. The House passed the tax bill Sat urday, along with $582 million in spending cuts to help the state out of a $2.8 billion budget deficit brought on by the oil price drop. A majority of senators had re sisted deeper spending cuts and pushed for a tax hike since the Leg islature’s back-to-back special ses sions began Aug. 6. The temporary tax package would raise the sales tax from 4 Vs percent to 5’A percent, and add 5 cents to the 10-cent per-gallon gaso line tax. Both would take effect Jan. 1 and expire Aug. 31. The spending-cut bill would elim inate nearly 2,000 state jobs and wipe out a 3 percent state employee pay raise scheduled for 1987. Also approved by the House was a provision to allow counties and cities not now collecting a transit tax to add a half-penny to their local sales taxes. At a session attended by only three senators, Hobby said the Sen ate Finance Committee would hold a hearing on the tax bill today. Asked if he expected the special session that began Sept. 8 to wrap up Tuesday or Wednesday, he replied, “Something like that.” Hobby, who initially had sought a permanent tax increase to 5 cents to cure the state’s money woes, said the temporary tax hike was the best this special session could do. 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