From: | LocInc@aol.com |
Date: | 02 Sep 1997 10:29:02 |
Reply: | cpeo-military |
Subject: | Roger Masters' Study |
Posting from Susan Gawarecki Upon reading the recent posting regarding "Environmental Pollution, Neurotoxicity and Criminal Violence," by Roger D. Masters (Phd. with Dartmouth College's Department of Government), several questions arose in my mind: (1) What are his qualifications, especially regarding the medical aspects of the study? (2) Does he come to the issue with preconceived ideas that he is attempting to prove, or has he seen consistent patterns (supported by statistically significant data) that he feels should be brought to the attention of the envirnomental, justice, and medical communities? (3) Can he document exposures and/or blood level (or body burdens) of the heavy metals above normal background in the at-risk population? I have sent him a message asking for a copy of his work so I can judge for myself, but would be cautious about accepting the summary as posted by Don Zweifel at face value. For one thing, Don refers to "exposure and receptivity to toxicological substances in the soil and drinking water on-base and often beyond the primary area of concern (AOC) into the surrounding communities." Of the many military bases I have done remedial and site investigations at, none have had contaminated drinking water, and exposure routes to the local population are generally lacking. However, lead paint is ubiquitous in the older buildings, including on-base housing (and older building elsewhere in the U.S.), and may be a significant concern. To my knowledge, the military is concerned about and has been making progress in identifying and removing lead paint from many buildings. I don't know how one would separate the effects of heavy metal toxicity (particularly at subclinical levels) from the effects of alcoholism and other substance abuse, physical/mental abuse of children, cigarette smoking, poor role models, poor nutrition and hygiene, childbearing at an early age with associated low birthweight problems, and the myriad other factors that families from low-income backgrounds tend to have and perpetuate. My guess is that it's a minor factor, likely contributing to IQ decreases when lead exposure is involved, rather than tendancies towards violence or anti-social behavior. I will be interested in reading Masters' study for myself. | |
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