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| Vol. 21, No. 23 |
| December 15, 1999 |
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September 1984 Construction will begin early next year on a $49 million national Children's Nutrition Research Center on the Texas Medical Center campus, according to D. Gayle McNutt, spokesman for Baylor College of Medicine. Baylor, in cooperation with Texas Children's Hospital, will operate the research center for the U.S. Department of Agriculture, which directs the nation's nutrition programs. Congress approved the facility August 10 and McNutt outlined construction plans August 13 at a news conference at the USDA in Washington, D.C. "The Children's Nutrition Research Center represents a national commitment to sound nutrition policies that give our children the best chance to become healthy adults who have fewer medical problems and live happier, more productive lives;' said Gramm, who attended the briefing. McNutt said, "Gramm was instrumental in convincing the administration of the importance of this center and in working with the Senate majority for its approval. Congressman Hightower has long been a strong advocate for the facility and guided it through the House Appropriations Committee, of which he is a member," McNutt said. McNutt said architectural work for the center has already been started and that construction may begin as early as January, with occupancy expected in 1987 The facility will be built on a site at the corner of Fannin and Holcombe Streets, adjacent to Texas Children's Hospital. Congress approved the nutrition research program in 1978, and Baylor has been doing limited studies through USDA contracts since 1979. Dr. Buford Nichols, professor of pediatrics at Baylor, has been named the Center's scientific director. He will head a team of 50 scientists with a budget projected at $12 million annually when the center becomes fully operational. The center's research mission will be to establish a scientific base for nutritional needs of women during pregnancy and lactation, and for children from conception through adolescence.
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