ecoyear

Here on the West Coast, we have nervously been watching the unfolding events in Japan. There is concern that radioactivity may travel across the Pacific to affect us by increasing long-term cancer rates.

Potassium iodide is thought to protect people exposed to radiation, and as a result, local and internet stores of the substance are now gone. I have been keeping track of the situation in Japan, and looking for reliable information concerning our risk here in California.

Finally today, I found a video posted March 15th by Jeffrey Moss, DDS, a man I respect highly for his intelligent, science-based and level-headed approach to health issues. Dr. Moss does sell supplements on the internet, but his presentation was focused on several articles he reviewed, and as you will see, he comes to a conclusion that does not involve potassium iodide (which he wasn't selling in the first place).

1. Potassium iodide (KI for our purposes) protects only the thyroid from the effects only of radioactive iodine. It does not protect other organs from radioactive iodine, nor does it protect at all from the effects of the other radioactive particles in fallout. Specifically, it does nothing to protect you from acute radiation poisoning (the kind that kills people within days or weeks).

2. Children under 18 years of age and the fetuses of pregnant women are at risk in the event of significant dose of radioactive iodine. Adults over age 30 are not at risk. They should not take KI. It would be a waste of a scarce resource.

3. The dose that people have been hoarding (125mg) was meant for nuclear plant workers exposed to a catastrophic situation. That dose can cause several side effects, including hyper and hypothyroidism, and a rash in about 1% of people who take it. As with any other substance, there is a risk of fatal anaphylaxis, and while this is rare, it would be sad for anyone to die from taking something that would have been useless anyways.

4. The dose of radiation at which the benefits of KI outweigh the risks is 25 rad. The level of radiation in Tokyo at this time is much, much, much lower. On the West Coast, it is nowhere near that in Tokyo because of the distance. There is no reason to take KI now (unless you are working in one of the plants, and I don't know about the population that has been ordered to stay indoors).

5. The KI dose that would likely be recommended depends on the age of the child and could be about 0.5-1mg weekly for several months. Anyways, this is only in the event of a catastrophe which has not yet occurred, and even then, may be an issue for Japan and not the US.

6. The kids who got thyroid cancer in Chernobyl were exposed to about 100 rad. They not only breathed in the radioactive iodine, but then, it fell on the grass the cows were eating. The cows then concentrated the radioactivity in their milk, which was then given to the children. Hopefully, we can be smarter this time around. KI continues to protect if taken as long as radioactive iodine is being ingested, though of course it's best not to ingest it.

7. Studies of airline pilots who are exposed to a lot of radiation (because flying in an airplane does that), show that they do get increased rates of DNA damage. This is reduced by about 35-40% in pilots who eat lots of dark green leafy vegetables and vitaminC-rich produce. In that study, there was no additional benefit from vitamins and supplements.

8. Similar advantages were noted in Hiroshima bombing survivors - cancer rates were reduced by 13% in those who ate dark green leafy vegetables daily (vs. less than once per week). One study of "oxidative stress" in X-ray technicians showed lower rates in those who took vitamin C supplements (500mg daily) and vitamin E supplements (150mg daily).

9. There is a concern that many people are iodine deficient (I'm not sure how you would reliably find out, but I'll look into it), and that this is the underlying problem with radioactive iodine damage to the thyroid. In Chernobyl, the soil was iodine deficient, so the theory goes that the children probably were deficient too (they are much more likely to be eating local food in Ukraine than we are here in the US).

10. If anything, here in the US, if the reactors in Japan melt down, there may be a time when we are asked to stay indoors for a few days. Perhaps if we are concerned, then, the thing to do is to make sure we have food, as well as necessary medications, etc... so we don't have a problem with staying indoors for a few days. A harder question is whether to buy insulating materials for those of us who have homes that are drafty and leaky.

CONCLUSION:

Eat your vegies. Consider going to the market to get lots of kale, collards, spinach and chard, grown locally (more vitamins in fresher produce), organic (so you don't inadvertently overdose on something else), and vitamin C rich fruit such as oranges and strawberries.

In theory, all the other detoxifier and antioxidant foods (eggs, onions, turmeric, green tea, etc...) should be protective, but the research is definite only on the foods listed above.