There has been a run on iodine tablets since Russia’s nuclear weapons are on alert and Russia captured the Chernobyl and Zaporizhzhya nuclear power plants. Is it necessary to get these tablets at home?
Iodine tablets offer protection in a few scenarios and only in people under 40 years of age and pregnant women, thus protecting their unborn child. They protect against one radioactive substance: iodine. “It does not help against the other radioactive materials that are released during nuclear weapons or an accident at a nuclear power plant,” says Lars Roobol, radiation expert at RIVM.
When you take an iodine tablet, your thyroid will suck up the non-radioactive iodine from the tablet. If a radioactive iodine cloud then floats past, it no longer fits. This reduces the risk of thyroid cancer, especially in children up to 18 years of age. The risk of thyroid cancer is not higher over the age of 40.
Bigger Problems
When are you at risk of inhaling too much radioactive iodine? “For example, in the event of a serious accident with a nuclear power plant,” says Roobol. The iodine concentration is then highest close to the power plant. Further away it thins. That is why the Netherlands is handing out iodine tablets to people up to the age of forty and pregnant women within twenty kilometers of a nuclear power plant. And to children up to 18 years old and pregnant women up to a hundred kilometers away. If there is an accident with a nuclear power plant in Ukraine, the amount of radioactive iodine that can blow there is so low that iodine tablets are of no use.
And what if a nuclear bomb explodes? “If a nuclear weapon goes off in Ukraine, we don’t have to worry about radioactive radiation,” says Roobol. “And with a nuclear bomb in the Netherlands there are bigger problems than radioactive iodine. Then it is like being hit by a bullet and afraid of lead poisoning.” Marianne Leenders, radiation expert at the National Poisons Information Center, part of the UMC Utrecht, agrees. “Iodine tablets are certainly not necessary with a nuclear bomb a thousand kilometers away. It probably won’t help if a closer one explodes, because the iodine that is released is bound to dust particles that are too large to breathe.”
Complex calculations
There is a gray area between ‘near’ and ‘far away’. Iodine tablets may be useful at a certain distance. This is now being investigated. Roobol: “These are complex model calculations because it is difficult to find detailed information about nuclear weapons.” Moreover: where any small iodine particles end up is highly dependent on wind and weather.
Leenders emphasizes that people should not just take iodine tablets. “Only take them if the government advises it. It matters when you take them. If you do that too early, you will pee out the iodine before the radioactive cloud floats by; too late, the radioactive iodine is already in your thyroid.” In addition, there are some side effects. Leenders: “The most common are nausea, gastrointestinal complaints and skin rashes. If you have a thyroid disorder, it can disrupt your thyroid. The worst side effect is an allergic reaction to iodine. The chance of that is small.”
If something really happens, it’s best to hide. Close windows and doors and turn off any mechanical ventilation. This way you not only prevent exposure to iodine, but all radioactive substances.