Protect Yourself From Radiation

I'm writing this page on March 22nd, 2011, just a couple of weeks after the 9.0 earthquake in Japan, which resulted in damage to at least 4 nuclear reactors there. (Updated for accuracy June 11th, 2011)

I have been receiving emails asking me about my thoughts and recommendations regarding the nuclear disasters in Japan.

There have been warnings that nuclear fallout from the accidents in Japan following the earthquake could be coming to the western United States, and we all should be prepared. However, others say that the danger to us here is overstated.

The state of Washington has been monitoring air for radiation and so far has found "no elevated readings."  The Washington State Department of Health went on to say that even if there were a "significant release" from a reactor in Japan, "radiation would be diluted before reaching our state and levels would be so low no protective action would be necessary." As of yesterday, air tests show "the state's overall background radiation levels haven't risen."

I also have received copies of private correspondence from friends of friends living in Japan, who say that actual radiation test results from locations not far from the reactors show normal background levels of radiation. Also, the reactors in Japan are a different design than the ones at Chernobyl and 3 Mile Island, and are much safer. A good article on this is Forbes: Fear of Japan's Radiation is Overdone.

Now, even though you probably will not have much, if any, exposure to radiation from Japan here in the United States, you are exposed to radiation right here at home every day.

While the word "radiation" might make you think of nuclear power plants, radioactive wastes, and x-ray machines, in fact, radiation is energy in the form of waves or high speed particles and includes all forms of energy in the entire electomagnetic spectrum. Non-ionizing radiation, which includes radio waves, heat waves, and light waves are beneficial. It's the ionizing radiation that breaks chemical bonds in molecules and can damage DNA. A good place to learn about radiation in easy-to-understand terms is EPA: RadTown USA: Basic Information

A good 82 percent of the radiation you are exposed to occurs naturally:

• Radon in soil and water 55%
• Cosmic radiation from the sun and other heavenly sources 8%
• Radiation from minerals in rock and soil 8%
• Radionuclides that have been in human bodies since the beginning of our species 11%

These are background sources that our human bodies have lived with and adapted to over millenia.

The remaining 18 percent comes from new manmade sources:

• Medical x-rays, 11%
• Nuclear medicine 4%
• Consumer products 3%

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has created a whole website just to show you where those sources of radiation are: RadTown USA.

According to the EPA, "By far, the largest radiation dose received by the public comes from smoking cigarettes. While cigarette smoke is not an obvious source of radiation exposure, it contains small amounts of radioactive materials which smokers bring into their lungs as they inhale. The radioactive particles lodge in lung tissue and over time contribute a huge radiation dose. Radioactivity may be one of the key factors in lung cancer among smokers." And that would apply to second-hand smoke as well.

Some other sites that can help you determine your exposure to radioactive materials in your life are:

• Radioactive Consumer Products
• Consumer Products Containing Radioactive Materials

Always, the best thing to do is avoid as many exposures that may be harmful to your health as you can. Since some of the radiation you may be exposed to is in the form of waves, and other is in the form of radioactive particles, there are different precautions to take for each.

With waves, such as electromagnetic fields, the protection is to be a good distance from the source, or to shield your exposure. It can be as simply as wearing a wide-brimmed hat to protect your skin from sunburn, or wearing the lead apron when you get an x-ray.

With radioactive particles, protection is to either avoid them or remove them from your body. You can avoid the radioactive particles from cigarette smoke most of the time, but other sources might not be so easy to avoid.

If a nuclear reactor has a meltdown, you need to protect your body from radioactive particles, or remove them from your body.

For the past few weeks there has been a rush to stock up on potassium iodide, which protects the thyroid from radioactive particles that can cause cancer. But that's all it protects. Potassium iodide can cause allergic reactions, intestinal upset, and salivary gland problems. I personally can't take iodine supplements of any kind. Here is more information on postassium iodide from Scientific American: Does Potassium Iodide Protect People from Radiation Leaks? But please do NOT take potassium iodide as a preventive measure. It is only effective if taken between forty minutes before and several hours after the moment of radiation exposure.

Another recommendation for radioactive particles is to eat a diet of brown rice, miso soup, and sea vegetables. This diet apparentlysaved lives after the bombing of Japan in 1945 in 1945. Since then, researchers have found that sea vegetables (sold in natural food stores) contain a substance that selectively binds radioactive strontium and removes it from the body. But I can't eat sea vegetables or grains, either.

One recommendation is to take the activated liquid zeolite drops as well as use a detox footbath. They have been recommending this for toxic chemical detox. They also remove radioactive particles from your body, such as strontium. Taking these drops and using your foot spa will protect your health from both toxic metal/chemical and radiation exposure. If there is radiation, you're covered. If not, you'll still have the benefit of removing some toxic chemicals from your body.