There is a great deal you can do to be prepared for nuclear war or other nuclear scenarios. You will need potassium iodide or potassium iodate to protect your thyroid gland from radioactive iodine. You will need to prepare a strategy for having clean and uncontaminated water and you will need a plan for obtaining clean or at least relatively clean food. Most importantly you will need knowledge of how to protect yourself and your family in a post-nuclear situation.
Nuclear war or reactor accidents will release large amounts of radioactive iodine, which is particularly dangerous because it travels downwind in gaseous form and will be avidly taken up by your thyroid gland. The radioactivity can then wreak havoc upon your thyroid and very possibly cause thyroid cancer. You may have read about this in the newspapers, and the government is finally considering passing out stable potassium iodide pills which will protect your thyroid by blocking the uptake of radioactive iodine. Potassium iodate will work just as well. If you're preparing for nuclear war, this is where you should start because it is so important.
Recommended Doses of Potassium Iodide for Different Risk Groups
| Daily potassium iodide dose (mg) | # of 65mg Tablets | |
|---|---|---|
| Adults over 40 yrs | 130 mg | 2 |
| Adults over 18 through 40 yrs | 130 mg | 2 |
| Pregnant or lactating women | 130 mg | 2 |
| Children over 12 through 18 yrs* | 65 mg | 1 |
| Children over 3 through 12 yrs | 65 mg | 1 |
| Over 1 month through 3 years | 32 mg | 1/2 |
| Birth through 1 month | 16 mg | 1/4 |
In some places you may be able to obtain potassium iodide free from the government. It may not be available to you however, and it is inexpensive so you may wish to obtain your own supply:
You're going to need reliable radiation detection equipment, otherwise you'll have no idea of your immediate safety in a postnuclear situation. Avoid buying secondhand radiation detection equipment at eBay or other sources, you need equipment that has been recently calibrated so you know it is functional. There is a great deal of junk on the market and it won't help you very much. You should investigate these sources:
There are many options for water filters, what you want are filters containing activated carbon or else osmotic filters. Water distillers are good for removing radioactive contaminants too but are generally energy-intensive. We will let email rad alert subscribers know whenever we locate exceptionally good suppliers of water filters and water distillers.
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