Thursday, March 17, 2011

I-131 And Your Thyroid


There is much focus on the ongoing events in Japan and the possible threat of radiation exposure. If a cloud of radiation is carried our way via the jet stream, one of the threats is I-131 (a radioactive form of iodine). Iodine and its relationship with our bodies is quite unique! Your thyroid cells are the only cells in your body that will uptake iodine into them. Also, your thyroid cells do not differentiate between safe iodine and radioactive iodine.

But what is your thyroid and why is it so important? Your thyroid gland is butterfly shaped and sits in the front part of the neck below the Adam's apple. It works in symphony with the rest of your endocrine system controlling the metabolism of every cell in your body.

Just as I starved myself of iodine before my I-131 treatment so that I would uptake as much radioactive iodine as possible, given a nuclear disaster you would want to flood your body with iodine so that your cells would be satiated in their need for iodine. Dosing yourself with iodine-rich foods or taking tablets like potassium iodide (KI), do not prevent radioactive iodine from entering your body, nor do they protect organs other than the thyroid gland. Flooding your system with iodine also does not reverse thyroid damage that has already occurred.

Another good way to get the needed iodine is through diet. For some, this may be a very traditional diet.
After any sort of radioactive exposure you want to be eating seaweed and algae along with almost any type of commercial heavy metal chelating formula to bind radioactive particles and help escort them out of the body. Whether you’re worried about depleted uranium, plutonium or other isotopes, this is the wise thing to do which can possibly help, and certainly won’t hurt. Many nutritional supplements have been developed for the purpose of detoxifying heavy metals, most of which contain the algaes and plant fibers and other binding substances. Basically, an anti-radiation diet should focus on the following foods:

· Miso soup
· Spirulina, chlorella and the algaes (kelp, etc.)
· Brassica vegetables and high beta carotene vegetables
· Beans and lentils
· Potassium, calcium and mineral rich foods
· High nucleotide content foods to assist in cellular repair including spirulina, chlorella, algae, yeast, sardines, liver, anchovies and mackerel
· cod liver oil and olive oil
· Avoid sugars and sweets and wheat
· A good multivitamin/multimineral supplement

Yet another benefit of the sea vegetables rarely discussed is their high mineral content, which is a bonus in the case of radioactive exposure. Consuming natural iodine, such as in the seaweeds, helps prevent the uptake of iodine-131 while iron inhibits the absorption of plutonium-238 and plutonium-239. Vitamin B-12 inhibits cobalt-60 uptake (used in nuclear medicine), zinc inhibits zinc-65 uptake and sulfur is preventative for sulfur-35 (a product of nuclear reactors) incorporation by the body.
But can you get too much iodine? It is important not to over-consume iodine as it has a relatively narrow range of intakes that reliably support good thyroid function (about 100 to 300 micrograms per day). Someone consuming large amounts of iodized salt or seaweeds could overdo it. Excessive iodine has a complex disruptive effect on the thyroid and may cause thyroid dysfunction. I liked this summary here

So, be safe my friends and don't panic. Make informed choices!

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

The “Iodine period” lasts about 70 days from the release (Half life 8 days); due to the highly controversial standards and data from the different agencies it can be a very good idea not to give milk for small kids for at least 7 weeks after fallout. Based upon Chernobyl (1986) experience, the highest risk of thyroid damage from I-131 contamination is among girls who were less then 10 years at the time of disaster old and who were the milk lovers. Such damage was evident as high level of TPO antibodies, moderate thyroid enlargement with inflammatory features. About 20 % of these population develped thyroid nodules 10 years later. The samples of nodular tissue demonstrated the cells with nuclear overlapping which is considered a marker of radiation damage.
However, a high level of fluorine and chlorine in drinking water can hamper activity of I-131(it is least active halogen, remember the articles about perchlorates and fluoridated water; the elementary iodine can be removed from drinking water with chlorine removal activated carbon filters. The I-131 is more dangerous when present as ions (dissolved salts) in water.
I hate to say that, but if the contamination continues, more women will resort to wear neck scarves to cover “madam’s apples” (thyroid nodules) or greet you with the neck smiles. The 95 % of I-131 is concentrating in the thyroid and rest in the salivary glands, breasts and ovaries

Russell Moris said...

I was referred to thyroid hormone supplements from a naturalopathy and I must tell you it makes a world of difference. Fatique is no longer a problem, and the extra weight that magically appeared is slowly diminishing. If by chance I run out, I can really tell the difference.