All shook up

New information about a fault line is stirring up controversy over the safety of California’s last working nuclear power plant.

The Shoreline fault lies a mere 650 yards from the Diablo Canyon nuclear reactor. Recent research shows the fault is twice as long as experts believed when Pacific Gas & Electric (PG&E) built the plant nearly three decades ago. Its length and intersection with other faults could create stronger earthquakes than anticipated in the initial design of the nuclear equipment.

Last month an internal review panel of the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) concluded the nuclear plant could withstand the strongest potential earthquake in the area, but former NRC inspector Michael Peck disagreed. He believes PG&E should shut down Diablo Canyon until the company can prove the plant’s systems are capable of handling higher stress levels.

As the controversy grows, U.S. Sen. Barbara Boxer, D-Calif., has promised a public hearing, according to the San Francisco Examiner. The anti-nuke group Friends of the Earth (FOE) has petitioned the NRC to shut down the reactor, claiming it no longer meets the requirements of its license. That’s the same technique FOE used to shut down another California nuclear plant last year.

H2O no

Overhydration can be lethal, according to a study recently published by the British Journal of Medicine. Two high-school football players and more than a dozen runners have died in the past few years from drinking too much water or sports drinks while engaged in strenuous exercise.

Consuming too much fluid can result in dangerously low blood sodium levels, causing cells to absorb excess water. Deadly brain swelling can result. Other symptoms include muscle cramps, nausea, vomiting, seizures, and unconsciousness.

Nearly half of the Chicago-area recreational runners surveyed in the study may be drinking too much fluid during races, says study co-author James Winger, a professor of family medicine at Loyola University Chicago. Winger advises athletes to drink only when thirsty. —J.B.

Shocked straight

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is reviewing whether to allow the Judge Rotenberg Educational Center in Massachusetts to continue using electric skin shock to control the aggressive and self-injurious behavior of some developmentally disabled patients. Fifty-five of the center’s 235 patients receive the shock therapy. Most are in their 30s, although five are between the ages of 17 and 21.

The treatment consists of a two-second shock delivered by an electrode attached to the patient’s arm or leg. It requires court approval and is a last-resort measure to control behaviors such as head banging, furniture throwing, or attacks on others. Patients say the shock feels like a hard pinch or bee sting. Some say it is more painful. One girl reportedly suffered burn marks on her arms and anxiety as a result of the treatment. Disability rights groups are calling for the FDA to ban the devices.

About 10 percent of developmentally disabled persons engage in self-injurious behavior. One young girl banged her head so hard both of her retinas detached, and one young man suffered a stroke.

More traditional treatment methods—teaching coping skills, altering the environment, or using medication—don’t work for everyone. One mother said her 21-year-old son was so violent she often locked herself and her young daughter in another room for safety. She says the shocks worked for him: “Do not take away what is saving his life.” —J.B.