’he Battalion
2 STATE & LOCAL
Ihursday, June 29,1989
r-eat, humidity make deadly duo
t rOliOfficial says body needs water boost to fight heat stroke, cramps
)oin
By Holly Beeson
se revolutionai
elves. Lie very.
^ they dead. Fur;
in, NBC News,II
up foreign tele
iTAFF WRITER
Sweating can be unpleasant but,
n hot and humid weather, it can
ave lives.
Dr. Clift Price, associate commis-
ioner for the Texas Department of
Health, said sweating is necessary
:or controlling increased body tem-
Deratures. Therefore replenishing
he body’s water supply is essential
ivhile exercising outside.
“If you’re not used to exercising
in hot weather,” he said, “body tem
perature will go up much higher and
cause heat cramps mainly in the
lower extremities.”
Heat cramps can be cured by rest
ing and drinking sufficient amounts
of water.
A more serious condition is heat
exhaustion, when 3 percent of body
water is lost, Price said. Symptoms
include dizziness, nausea and head
ache.
The most dangerous condition is
heat stroke, when people lose the
ability to control body temperature.
“When heat stroke occurs, body
temperature can reach 106 or 107
degrees,” he said. “This can cause
sudden weakness, severe headache,
loss of consciousness, brain damage
and sometimes death.”
People most susceptible to heat
problems are young children and el
derly people, Price said.
“Children’s bodies aren’t as capa
ble of perspiring as easily as adults,”
he said. “Elderly people gradually
lose their ability to sweat and dilate
blood vessels.
“The elderly can get used to the
heat by gradually increasing the time
they’re outside in the heat, but it’s
probably best that they avoid going
outside between 10 a.m. and 3 p.m.
— the hottest part of the day.”
Some drugs and health conditions
can also affect heat loss, Price said.
Tranquilizers, sedatives and di
uretics (chemicals increasing urine
flow) can all interfere with heat loss.
Heart disease, diabetes and other
See Heat/Page 4
it big mistake.S(
indent Sam
.on snake in gJA
NOW claims Clements’ veto of two bills
ndangers sexual assault victims’ rights
port, the Waste
k all this is goi
ernment's relaffi fiyMia Moody
s?”
d Chinese v
hey send uswa|
recipe for won-
). Favorite ofPri
STAFF WRITER
eople be treated
tnd?”
cles.”
ou really don’ll
at we can be led
lat will happei
Members of the National Organization for
iVomen are concerned that the rights of women
night be jeopardized since bills that would make
easier for sexually assaulted and battered
omen to File charges against their attackers
:re struck down recently by Gov. Bill Clements.
Clements vetoed a bill that would have allowed
woman to file charges in a sexual assault case
without taking a polygraph test, as the current
law requires.
The other vetoed bill would have allowed a
battered woman to include as evidence past inci
dents concerning the offender when filing
charges.
Mary Calk, legislative liaison for NOW, said
one of the the bills, passed by the 71st session of
Congress, would have improved treatment of
sexually assaulted women when they report an
assault in Texas.
“Currently, sexually assaulted women are
made to suffer twice by being forced to take poly
graph tests in order to have their charges accep
ted,” Calk said.
“When men file criminal charges, they are not
required to take polygraph examinations, so why
should women?”
Dr. Wendy Stock, an assistant psychology pro
fessor and faculty adviser for the Texas A&M
chapter of NOW, said these bills are needed to
protect women from unfair treatment.
“Polygraph tests are not held in high regard,”
Stock said. “They are not always accurate and
they are not usually used in other cases, so why
should women be made to suffer the assault twice
by the use of a device that is highly questionable?”
Women are treated unfairly when they bring
charges against repeated attackers for battering,
Calk said.
“Currently when women bring charges against
See Women/Page 4
Election set to fill seat
left empty by Wright
AUSTIN (AP) — An Aug. 12
special election was set by Gov.
Bill Clements Wednesday to fill
the congressional seat being va
cated by Jim Wright, who stepped
down in the face of a House
ethics committee investigation.
Clements set the date after re
ceiving an official letter of resig
nation from Wright. The former
House speaker’s district encom
passes most of Fort Worth and
parts of Tarrant County.
“This is to notify you officially
that I am resigning my seat in the
United States House of Rep
resentatives for the 12th District
of Texas, effective at the close of
business Friday, June 30th,
1989,” the letter states.
The brief missive also gives
Wright’s best wishes to Clements.
A copy was sent by Wright to the
U.S. House clerk, Donnald K.
Anderson.
There had been speculation
that Wright would seek re-elec
tion to his seat, despite resigning
as speaker, but Wright said Tues
day that he would leave Congress.
His announcement prompted
Democrats to back a local attor
ney to replace Wright.
“You can be sure that Pete Ge-
ren is our candidate,” said U.S.
Rep. Mike Andrews of Houston,
co-chairman of the Democratic
Campaign Committee. “I can’t
think of a better person to take
over for Jim Wright.”
The main function of An
drews’ organization is to help
elect Democrats to Congress.
Geren, 37, ran Democratic
Sen. Lloyd Bentsen’s office from
Houston, Austin and Dallas from
1985 to 1987. Last year, he served
as finance chairman for Bentsen’s
re-election campaign.
“It looks like everything is
starting to fall into place for
Pete,” Dennis Sheehan, Tarrant
County Democratic Party chair
man, told the Fort Worth Star-
Telegram.
Sheehan said Democrats con
sider it essential to unite behind a
single candidate.
“We’ve lost too many elections
in the past because we were split
as a party,” he said.
The only other Democrat be
lieved to be strongly considering
running, former State District
Judge Catherine Adamski, said
she would make her decision by
the end of this week.
The campaign could develop
into a confrontation between Ge
ren and Republican Dr. Bob Lan
ier, an allergist and television per
sonality.
U.S. Sen. Phil Gramm has is
sued a strong recommendation
for Lanier.
A subplot to a Geren-Lanier
contest could be the resulting bat
tle of influence between Gramm
and Bentsen.
Ihinese way,
uirt, Timem;
saying it, In
our questions
lg -”
; out ot this.
Chan. No 1
/e nice day
yndicate
JOB
take anotherio-
i junior journo
it for Them
: see the Sou^
tyear?” w aS n1 '
■
iman.
eno,” heans^
s Syndicate
START
WITH
DENIM,
THEN...
Spirited denim jumpers
add a new kick to your
summer wardrobe. The
zip-front style with
suspenders comes with its
own white t-shirt, 64.00.
The cross-back version
with a dropped waist
sports a graphic patch,
46.00. Both 100% cotton,
sizes 3-13. Junior Dresses.
FOLEY’S
Problem Pregnancy"
JDlVe Usten, We care, We PieCp
_ . •Free Pregnancy Tests
( •Concemecf CounseCcrs
Brazos Valley
Crisis Pregnancy' Service
We’re Local!
3620 E. 29th Street
24 Fir. hotline
823-CARE
'//M
' INY ADS.
BUT REAL
HEAVYWEIGHTS
WHEN RESULTS
REALLY COUNT.
Battalion
Classified!
845-2611 5