HEALTH REPORT - Lead and Violence

HEALTH REPORT - Lead and Violence
By Nancy Steinbach

Broadcast: Wednesday, March 09, 2005

I'm Gwen Outen with the VOA Special English Health Report.

A researcher says lead in the environment could be a major cause of violence by young people.

Doctor Herbert Needleman is a professor at the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine in Pennsylvania. He presented his findings at the yearly meeting of the American Association for the Advancement¹ of Science.

Doctor Needleman says the presence of lead in the brain changes the neurons that control actions. And he says that can cause a person to act in antisocial and criminal ways.

Lead is a metal that is especially dangerous to babies and young children. They can get it into their bodies by breathing or swallowing lead dust, or by eating soil or pieces of lead paint. Children with high levels of lead can suffer brain and nervous system damage, learning disabilities, slow growth, headaches and hearing loss.

In the nineteen seventies, Doctor Needleman found lower scores on intelligence tests even in children who did not have such signs of lead poisoning. After that, lead was removed from gasoline and paint in the United States. Yet many homes still have old lead paint.

Lead was also used in older water pipes. In fact, officials just announced stronger testing and reporting requirements as of next year for lead in American drinking water.

The newest research by Doctor Needleman shows that even very small amounts of lead in bones can affect brain development. A simple blood test can measure lead. But an X-ray process is needed to measure levels in bone.

In two thousand two, such tests were done on one hundred ninety young people who were in jail. The findings showed that their average levels were higher than normal.

And, in nineteen ninety-six, three hundred children were studied. Test scores showed higher levels of aggression² and learning problems in those with increased levels of lead. Yet these levels were still considered safe by the government.

Doctor Needleman and other experts say all this research shows that one way to reduce crime is to keep young children away from lead.

That will not be easy. Just last week, the government warned Americans about charm³ jewelry⁴ with high levels of lead. These metal charms⁵ were made in China and sold in some arts and crafts stores in the United States. An American company is now trying to recall almost three million of them.

This VOA Special English Health Report was written by Nancy Steinbach. I'm Gwen Outen.

1 advancement   

n.前进，促进，提升

参考例句：

• His new contribution to the advancement of physiology was well appreciated.他对生理学发展的新贡献获得高度赞赏。
• The aim of a university should be the advancement of learning.大学的目标应是促进学术。

2 aggression   

n.进攻，侵略，侵犯，侵害

参考例句：

• So long as we are firmly united, we need fear no aggression.只要我们紧密地团结，就不必惧怕外来侵略。
• Her view is that aggression is part of human nature.她认为攻击性是人类本性的一部份。

3 charm   

vt.使着迷，使陶醉；n.招人喜欢之处，魅力

参考例句：

• With all imperfections the short play has a real charm.尽管有不少缺欠，这出小戏仍颇具魅力。
• He could resist her charm no longer.他再也抗拒不住她的魅力。

4 jewelry   

n.（jewllery）（总称）珠宝

参考例句：

• The burglars walked off with all my jewelry.夜盗偷走了我的全部珠宝。
• Jewelry and lace are mostly feminine belongings.珠宝和花边多数是女性用品。

5 charms   

n.魔力( charm的名词复数 )；魅力；迷人的特征；（链或手镯上的）吉祥小饰物v.使高兴( charm的第三人称单数 )；使着迷；吸引；使中魔法

参考例句：

• Gold charms dangled from her bracelet. 她的手镯上挂着许多金饰物。
• She was impervious to his charms. 他的魅力不能令她动心。 来自《简明英汉词典》