Iodine

Since starting this blog, I promised myself I had to get to iodine (I know, I am weird). Iodine has made headlines with the earthquake in Japan and the subsequent nuclear crisis. Much of the problem in Japan is due to an increase in radioactive elements in the environment after nuclear power plants went awry.

While the release of strontium-90, cesium-137, and plutonium-239 into the environment will have damaging long term effects (children of children of children [etc.] will still have higher risks of cancer), iodine-131 caused the most immediate risk. Radioactive iodine breaks down fast due to a short half-life (days versus thousands of years) but if it is taken up by the body  it accumulates in the thyroid and can be cancerous. Because so much radioactive iodine was released during the nuclear crisis, this turned into a HUGE problem. To alleviate the problem, persons living near the Fukushima plant were provided with potassium iodide pills which block the accumulation of radioactive iodine in the thyroid. These same pills were used in Chernobyl with great success, but ultimately many of these people will still succumb to cancer because of exposure to high levels of radiation.

Though the risk to radioactive iodine will recede rapidly, this does not mean that Japan is out of the woods. The workers who have so diligently been trying to control the nuclear rods will assuredly die from radiation poisoning and the surrounding areas near the plants will be contaminated for hundreds to thousands of years. One estimate suggests that it will take 100 years JUST for the nuclear rods to cool down. What this means is that these nuclear rods cannot be removed and will continue to cause damage for another 100 years...it's an extremely frightening but real scenario. Even though the news will die down about Japan, just like it did in Chernobyl does not mean that the problem will also go away. Japan and the rest of the world will be dealing with this past our lifetime.

Here's a sad but heartwarming story. To save Japan from nuclear meltdown, a group of 50 workers stayed behind and remained at the plant sacrificing their own lives for their country. And now, a group of retired workers have come to aid the "Fukushima 50" knowing that even if they die of cancer, they have lived a fulfilled life. It's crazy to even think about - these people know and understand that they will die because of the work they do. And despite their hard work, there will still be ramifications.

Fun Fact: Iodine has been used widely as a disinfectant, and still is around in that role today. When it is applied to an infection, iodine disinfects by "brute chemical attack," such that bacteria have no way of becoming resistant. The overall story to this fact? If antibiotic resistance continues at its current rate, iodine may make a comeback as a disinfectant.