Aiken Standard from Aiken, South Carolina • Page 10

Page 10 Aiken Standard, Aiken, S.C., Monday, January 19.1»70 X-Rays Demand Respect EDITOR'S NOTE: This is one of a series of articles offered for publication by the Public Health Information Committee of the S.C. Medical Assn. Dr. Joseph I. Waring of Charleston is chairman.

Other members are: Dr. Donald H. Robinson and Dr. John M. Preston of Columbia; Dr.

J. Decherd Guess and Dr. Willard Mills of Greenville; Dr. John Manos and Dr. Leon Banov of Charleston.

By HAROLD S. PETTIT, M.D. X-rays were discovered near the turn of the century. Since that time about 20 years have been added to the life expectancy of the average person in the United States, and x-ray has played a very important part in the medical care that made that possible. However, a healthy respect for the hazards of radiation is desirable.

When atomic testing began in the early fifties these hazards were grossly exaggerated, producing a new psychological disorder which has been called "radiophobia" or "neu- clear neurosis." It was not until about 1920 that the deleterious effects of radiation were fully appreciated and most of the pioneers of radiology suffered ill effects from their work. Almost all of them developed cancer of the skin of the hands and many died of leukemia. Up until 1950 the radiologist had a life expectancy of 5 years less than physicians in general. In the early days the making of an x-ray plate required an exposure of 15 to 20 minutes. The same examination can be performed today in a fraction of a second.

X-ray equipment has been improved tremendously. Highly sensitive x-ray film has been developed and intensifying screens of high efficiency are now available to increase the effectiveness of the x-ray. In fluoroscopy image intensifiers have reduced the amount of necessary radiation and lessened the total time needed for an examination. The amount of'radiation that is now needed with modern equipment in an x-ray examination is so little that there is no danger to the individual patient, except in early pregnancy. However, we must always be conscious of the genetic effect.

Radiation of the gonads pro- Farm Corner Hints On How To Avoid Water Problems In Winter By A County Agent Have you counted your blessings recently? If you didn't have any water problems last week you were unusually blessed. Most of us had problems, and now our only choice is to pay the consequences. Busted pipes, busted drains, frayed nerves, numb fingers and some even missed their Saturday night bath. In fact, two families out my way are still without water sorry. I learned later that one of them finally got their pipes thawed out.

Burying pipes six inches in the soil isn't deep enough, as so many found out last week. I have no knowledge how deep the ground froze, but it's recommended that water pipes be placed at least twelve inches deep. Dan Magness, Power Use Supervisor, Aiken Electric Cooperative, was telling me about a neighbor he wanred last summer about laying pipes only six inches deep. Well, he finished his plumbing job, but duces mutations and these are accumulative in a given population. In 1956 a large committee of radiologists, biologists, and geneticists, which had been organized by the National Academy of Science, studied the problem of radiation mutations and made its recommendations.

It was the opinion of the committee that an average dose of 10 units of total body radiation to everyone under 30 years of age was tolerable. Selected individuals, that is people working in radiation industries, could receive up to 5 per year after the age of 18. These amounts of radiation which are accepted as permis- sable are above and beyond the natural radiation that we are all subjected to. We live in a sea of radiation, being bombarded from outer space and the earth constantly to the tune of one-seventh of a full every year. With our present equipment the dose received by the gonads when a chest x-ray film is made is in the order of 0.001 r.

This is the same dose that we receive every 3 and one half days when we live on earth. These recommendations apply to people in the child bearing age. In the treatment of cancer doses as high as 6.000 are given to small areas of the body. They produce local damage but little or no general ill effects are apparent. Your Birthday MONDAY, JANUARY 19 --Bom today, you are fond of home and family and for this reason you may marry young.

You need to be the center of your own domestic circle, looked up to and loved by and children. You would make an excellent marriage partner and an excellent parent, for you have a great deal of love to give and no hesitation at all about giving it. You are open in your affections, so that people always know where they stand with you. Patience is your chief characteristic. Whether you are involved in some career activity or in social or leisure- time projects, you never try to hurry things to a conclusion, never try to push decisions or force results.

You believe in helping nature along as far as possible but you also realize that, in the end, nature will take her own course and must be allowed to do so. Thus you work with rather than against fate. You are highly intelligent and are capable of making decisions as rapidly as the next person. You do not believe, however, that speed is necessarily a great virtue. If it accompanies accuracy, all well and good but accuracy must be present or speed might just as well not exist.

It leads to the slipshod work you cannot abide. To find what is in store for you tomorrow, select your birthday and read the corresponding paragraph. Let your birthday star be your daily guide. Tuesday, JaiMry CAPRICORN (Dec. 23-Jan.

20)--Don't allow even a minor argument to get started on the home front or you may be in for considerable personal unhappiness. AQUARIUS (Jan. 21 Feb. things in moderation today. Keep your mind on the Job at hand and avoid working to the point of being overtired.

PISCES (Feb. 20-March 21) --The wise Pisces will put off facing unpleasant issues until the afternoon hours. Morning is for preparation. ARIES (March 22-April 20) --The Aries who does too much in the expectation of helping another will discover that he is only hurting himself. TAURUS (April 21-May 21) --Keep to your usual pattern of work and play; otherwise you may find that unusual pressures have caused a depressed mood.

GEMINI (May 22-June 21) --A trying day but the Gemini who keeps his guard up where other people are concerned should be able to come off well. CANCER (June 22-July 23) --Take conservative action only, regardless of what others advise at this time. Be your own best confidant. LEO (July 24-Aug. 23) -Only after long and mature consideration of a problem regarding others should you take action.

Don't be hasty. VIRGO (Aug. 24-Sept. 23)The pressures of an emotional problem make intellectual decisions all but impossible. Save reasoning for another time.

LIBRA (Sept. 24-Oct. 23)-The Libra who is really interested in what others think of him will exercise special caution today in his personal contacts. SCORPIO (Oct. 24-Nov.

22) Morning disappointment must not be allowed to set the pattern for the day. Do your best to rise to the occasion quickly. SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 23- Dec. 22)--You should be able to discover precisely how the wind bkms by evening.

Don't try to rush things or you may incur a setback. (Copyright, ItTt, by United Feature Syndicate, Inc.) Dan's neighbor came over lalater to borrow some water. It's past New Year's and resolutions, but to make a few late ones would be in order. We all need a little exercise, so why not bury those pipes at least 12 inches deep. The pump house wasn't tight enough, so a little insulation might help.

Exposed pipes were the hardest hit. These are easily protected with insulating material that's very easy to install and cheap, too, when we consider all the costs associated with a cold snap such as we had. For those hard to insulate pipes or water pumps, a thermostatically controlled heat cable is available for about 50 cents per foot. It's very simple to install and very inexpensive to operate for its heats only when the temperature drops to 32 degrees. I can vouch for the fact that this heat cable is very effective and eliminates the worry associated with an exposed pump.

Time to plug up the loop holes in your farm management. Agricultural Economists tell us the squeeze will remain on farm profits into the 70's. Production costs will be up, but prices you receive will be essentially the same, or slightly lower for some crops. Now is the time to locate and plug up the holes in your production practices and management that cost you money last year. Fertilizer costs are up.

machinery costs are higher, labor will cost more, so in the light of the same income, some costs must be cut essentially to maintain the status quo. The pencil could very easily be your be your best tool for the next few months. Figure your production costs, estimate your returns, then decide if some adjustments need to be made. Professional help is available to help make some of your decisions. Soil testing could easily be the key to unlock the profit potential on many farms.

Unless the pH, calcium and magnesium levels are adequate, your money invested in ferti- PINE SEEDLINGS READY FOR DELIVERY lizer for top yields could result in poor returns. Soil tests should be made as soon as possible so recommendations are received in time to help make decisions on fertilizer use this spring. Feeder Pig Sale a Grand Slam The feeder pig sale held in Saluda on Monday proved to be the best on held in the sale's three-year history. Fifty pound number 1's and 2's sold for $27.21 per head, seventy pound 1's and 2's brought $29.16, and eighty pound number 3's sold for $28.58 per head. There seems to be a high demand for feeder pigs, and this offers a real opportunity for feeder pig producers.

Recent studies in- dicate that feeder pig production could be a very profitable business even on a part- time basis. Net income to a good manager should run from $150 to $200 per sow per year above feed costs..