West Coast? Iodine & Fallout Information - Page 7

[joybird]

This today from natural news.  

http://www.NaturalNews.com/031731_radiation_preparedness.html

[Chamomile Girl]

Originally Posted by joybird 

This today from natural news.  

http://www.NaturalNews.com/031731_radiation_preparedness.html

See, I actually find that article to be extremely hysterical. And as a result very unhelpful. And I don't buy the line about governments withholding information to prevent panic:

Do not rely on your government to tell you the truth about what's happening. Governments are in the business of "preventing panic" by withholding information you need to know.

Because if this were the case there would have been no evacuations ordered last week in the face of a possible tsunami. Many times local governments actually err on the side of caution and then end up looking foolish. The evacuation of Houston a few years ago springs to mind. It also makes the assumption that every person involved in monitoring the situation (ie. scientists, media, politicians) are all members of some unilateral single-minded "Government", which is simply not the case. I mean, krikey, our actual governing bodies can't manage to agree with one another about anything, I don't see how they could manage to coordinate a successful no-panic propaganda campaign on such short notice.

The article also makes the crazy assumption that major cities (like Los Angeles) are going to be evacuated which would never happen, even in the event of the worst case scenario. I don't know why that guy is trying to spread panic (maybe to sell his products?) but it seems to be that his logic, his information, and his motives are all suspect.

[joybird]

Check out today's broadcast of Democracy Now.  

[WuWei]

There are nuclear power plants all up and down the East Coast.  The risk of an earthquake affecting one is greater than the "radiation risk" on the West Coast, 5000+ miles from Japan's nuclear plants.

Mike Adam's (Natural News) fear-mongering is unhealthy for all.  We can not run from life.  Life is safe.  Fear is not a safe place to live. btdt. 

Now, I choose Trust.  Much healthier place to live, in my experience.  Thich Nhat Hanh's book Peace Is Every Step helped me to move from a place of choosing fear to choosing Trust.

Pat

"Security is mostly a superstition. It does not exist in nature, nor do the children of men as a whole experience it. Avoiding danger is no safer in the long run than outright exposure. Life is either a daring adventure, or nothing."  --- Helen Keller

Saw this quote recently, "Anybody who tells you to be afraid is trying to manipulate you".

[joybird]

I realize that there are nuclear plants all over this country.  However, none of them are experiencing the immediate threat of core meltdown of SIX nuclear reactors and their storage pools.  Considering that radioactive fallout could reach here in 2-3 days, in the case of a large radiation release propelled into the atmosphere and jet stream I fail to see how people think we would not experience negative effects.  I've done the math.  My DP studied environmental science.  A large percentage of pollution in California is known to have originated in Japan.  

Actually, avoiding nuclear radiation is a LOT safer in the long run than outright exposure, although I think Helen Keller was a genius.  The risk is small now.  If the situation worsens, the risk does not appear to be so small.  The situation does not seem to be getting better.

[Chamomile Girl]

Originally Posted by joybird 

I realize that there are nuclear plants all over this country.  However, none of them are experiencing the immediate threat of core meltdown of SIX nuclear reactors and their storage pools.  Considering that radioactive fallout could reach here in 2-3 days, in the case of a large radiation release propelled into the atmosphere and jet stream I fail to see how people think we would not experience negative effects.  I've done the math.  My DP studied environmental science.  A large percentage of pollution in California is known to have originated in Japan.  

Actually, avoiding nuclear radiation is a LOT safer in the long run than outright exposure, although I think Helen Keller was a genius.  The risk is small now.  If the situation worsens, the risk does not appear to be so small.  The situation does not seem to be getting better.

But the situation is not getting any worse either. Look, I was just listening to NPR where they were interviewing

Kathryn Higley, head of the department of nuclear engineering and radiation health physics at Oregon State University

and a caller asked what the danger was to the west coast in the advent of Worst Case Scenerio. She came flat out and said that even then there would be no health risk to us. We would get some small amounts of radiation but not anywhere near levels where it would cause cancer.

The program is here, but the audio won't be posted until 3pm. If you can find another station (other than kqed) that is playing Talk of the Nation, you can listen to it sooner.

[joybird]

Okay.  That's what everyone's saying.  But that's not what physics and mathematics are saying.  No one is quite sure what the worst case scenario is, but according to scientists on Democracy Now (which I trust to be a far more reputable source than npr) it could indeed be catastrophic, above and beyond the effects of Chernobyl.  

[Pepper]

Originally Posted by joybird 

I have started packing.  I've been listening to Democracy Now this morning.  Nuclear experts say that if a full meltdown happens involving the fuel pools, which seems more likely than not at this point, it will affect the entire planet and the world's food supply.  Considering the trajectory of events so far, it no longer feels crazy to try and get out of the direct downwind path as best I can.  

http://www.scientificamerican.com/article.cfm?id=weather-japan-radiation-united-states

Hugs and positive thoughts to all of us. This seems to be a nightmare of epic proportions and it continues to worsen. Apparently, the Japanese were using reclaimed plutonium in Reactor 3 which is much more dangerous than uranium.

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/03/18/world/asia/18nuclear.html?_r=1&hp

[WuWei]

For perspective: "In the 1986 Chernobyl disaster, radioactive material from a raging fire spread across much of Europe and was detected on the clothing of Swedish workers, which first alerted the world to the disaster that Soviet authorities tried to keep quiet.

That calamity, the world's worst nuclear disaster, resulted in the deaths of 32 workers who tried to put out the fire at the Ukrainian plant. A 20-year study released last year by the U.N. Scientific Committee on the Effects of Atomic Radiation found that there were about 6,000 cases of thyroid cancer in children from Ukraine and Belarus who drank milk with elevated levels of radioactive iodine from cows in the area. Treated correctly, thyroid cancer has a survival rate above 90 percent.

Radiation levels were not high enough to harm others in the former Soviet Union and Europe who lived in the area where the cesium-137, iodine-131 and other radioactive materials drifted for hundreds of miles, the study found."

http://www.mercurynews.com/science/ci_17613753?source=most_emailed&nclick_check=1

Risk of a motor vehicle accident: "In the United States your chances of being injured in an motor vehicle accident is better than one in a thousand, in any one year." 

America's healthcare-system-induced deaths are the  third leading cause of the death in the U.S., after heart disease and cancer.

I am really not worried about radiation in America from 5000+ miles away in Japan. Distance, time, shielding, substitution are the protections from direct radiation. Foods are radioactivity-protective. Fear is not. Read research not headlines for information. The emotional escalation of fear-mongering SELLS. I don't buy it.

Pat

[joybird]

Some good news.  The first good news I've seen in days.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-pacific-12779512

[Ornery]

After researching further, I feel confident that at this moment, my family and I are safe.  If radiation reaches our coast, I don't believe it will be enough to impact us greatly in the short term.  I had an initial knee jerk reaction of fear, I think because it is easier for me to focus on what I can do to try to keep my immediate family from harm than it is to think about the magnitude of suffering in Japan.  I can do next to nothing to help the Japanese people except for pray, raise money and donate.

I am not confident that the people of Japan outside of the exclusion area are safe from radiation, as their government is telling them.  I am not confident that my cousin and his young children in Osaka are safe from radiation.  My heart is breaking over what is happening there and I wish there was a way to help more than we have already. 

I loath people who actively sell fear and profit off of it but I get really concerned about the level of truth we are receiving from the Japanese government and from our government.  It is so frustrating to be lied to in this way. 

[bonjourmama]

agreed. perspective is everything.

Thanks joybird for the new link. Fingers crossed.

Thanks Wuwei for the encouraging words. You are right, fear gets us nowhere.

Thank you everyone for participating in this thread and sharing resources back and fourth. 

[mom61508]

Omery-

Curious If the winds are blowing towards the US wouldn't Osaka actually be pretty safe as far as the radiation is concerned? 

This whole thing is so tragic :(

[lil_miss_understood]

Originally Posted by mom61508 

Omery-

Curious If the winds are blowing towards the US wouldn't Osaka actually be pretty safe as far as the radiation is concerned? 

This whole thing is so tragic :(

Osaka is less than 400 miles from Fukushima. The majority of the radiation, in the event of a cataclysmic event, would fall within about an 800 mile radius from what I understand, based on Chornobyl.

[Karamom]

I found this article by Dr. Tenpenny helpful: http://tenpennyimc.com/Blog/post/2011/03/17/Prepare-but-dont-overreact.aspx

In my experience, you won't know how you will respond to iodine until you start taking it. In some, iodine is truly the "cure" to a long list of ailments. In others, it can cause a lot of problems and side effects. Iodine can correct Hashimoto's thyroiditis in some; in others, especially those who are low in selenium, it can *cause* Hashimoto's disease (an autoimmune inflammation of the thyroid). Given the necessity of iodine for life, it is not clear why some people react to iodine in salt or seafood. Side effects can include gastrointestinal symptoms (nausea, epigastric pain, and diarrhea), significant total-body rash, and something called "iodide fever". Toxic reactions generally require large doses, but some people are very sensitive and even small doses can cause a reaction. For patients on thyroid medications, taking iodine can effect their required dosage -- they may require less...or more. In almost everyone, the TSH will go up while on iodine, as explained below.

When taking iodine supplements, it is important to also take the mineral selenium (100-200mcg/day). Selenium interacts uniquely with iodine. It has antioxidant properties and protects the thyroid during the synthesis of thyroid hormones. It is also important for both activation and inactivation of thyroid hormone at the cellular level.

[PlayaMama]

thank you so much for your sensible perspective!! this really helps to put it into perspective.

Originally Posted by WuWei 

For perspective: "In the 1986 Chernobyl disaster, radioactive material from a raging fire spread across much of Europe and was detected on the clothing of Swedish workers, which first alerted the world to the disaster that Soviet authorities tried to keep quiet.

That calamity, the world's worst nuclear disaster, resulted in the deaths of 32 workers who tried to put out the fire at the Ukrainian plant. A 20-year study released last year by the U.N. Scientific Committee on the Effects of Atomic Radiation found that there were about 6,000 cases of thyroid cancer in children from Ukraine and Belarus who drank milk with elevated levels of radioactive iodine from cows in the area. Treated correctly, thyroid cancer has a survival rate above 90 percent.

Radiation levels were not high enough to harm others in the former Soviet Union and Europe who lived in the area where the cesium-137, iodine-131 and other radioactive materials drifted for hundreds of miles, the study found."

http://www.mercurynews.com/science/ci_17613753?source=most_emailed&nclick_check=1

Risk of a motor vehicle accident: "In the United States your chances of being injured in an motor vehicle accident is better than one in a thousand, in any one year." 

America's healthcare-system-induced deaths are the  third leading cause of the death in the U.S., after heart disease and cancer.

I am really not worried about radiation in America from 5000+ miles away in Japan. Distance, time, shielding, substitution are the protections from direct radiation. Foods are radioactivity-protective. Fear is not. Read research not headlines for information. The emotional escalation of fear-mongering SELLS. I don't buy it.

Pat

[Otto]

Originally Posted by joybird 

Considering that radioactive fallout could reach here in 2-3 days, in the case of a large radiation release propelled into the atmosphere and jet stream I fail to see how people think we would not experience negative effects.  I've done the math.  My DP studied environmental science.

How does your model loft the material to the tropopause? How does the model jet stream then decide when to release it and whether the particulate goes up into the stratosphere or lower into the atmosphere?

[mmmmochi]

 I appreciate that people are donating to Japan. In Sendai, the suffering from the tsunami is immense.

Tokyo is relatively safe in so far as its grim, with food and water shortages and some power cuts, but the infrastructure is in place still.

Of course I dont trust them to get the situation under control, and I dont feel we aer safe in Tokyo. Any level of raised radiation here is not safe at ALL especially for children.

Glad that people are thinking of the children here.

 I just am so glad there are people making sure aid gets to the people in the worst hit areas.

I guess we have to take our chances. I wish I was thousands of miles away. Its a lot better than 209km.

best wishes and truely hope the US is safe from the effects of this.

[mmmmochi]

But that is STILL 6000 Russian children, suffering terribly from thyroid cancer, and what about the other cancers and birth defects? And 600 of those children dying.

How utterly inhumane to say dont panic.

Of course, who gives a damn about children outside of the US being at risk from cancers or being at risk

[JTA Mom]

Originally Posted by mmmmochi 

But that is STILL 6000 Russian children, suffering terribly from thyroid cancer, and what about the other cancers and birth defects? And 600 of those children dying.

How utterly inhumane to say dont panic.

Of course, who gives a damn about children outside of the US being at risk from cancers or being at risk

I am very, very sorry that you are suffering. I am very, very sorry that your children are suffering, that those affected by the earthquake and tsunami are suffering. It is horrible.

However, that does not give you a free pass to take out your frustration on other people. No one said who cares about those children. No one. And to imply otherwise is, imo, unjustified. It is NOT inhumane to tell a bunch of people who 5000 MILES away who are panicking to stop panicking. Huge doses of iodine are not benign either.

And no where on this thread did ANYONE indicate that they don't give a damn about children outside the US. NO ONE.

I am sorry you are stuck there, I am sorry you have no way out. It is no one's fault that this happened. In a perfect world, we would be able to get you & everyone else out of there a few days ago. However, we are just single women on the internet, spread far apart. Taking out your rage (and rightfully so, I would be enraged as well if I was in your position) on us, while giving you a place to vent it, is neither productive nor does it do any good.

Ami