Potassium Iodine SOLD-OUT

[itsrobert]

I think more than 99 percent of the West Coast did not buy any. So what if there is a real life threatening radiation threat, how well are we prepared to get it to the rest of the 99+ percent of us?

Something to think about.

[tularetom]

Nah, somebody bought it up to hoard it and make a fat profit

Hopefully they'll lose their ass.

[truedelphi]

1. Ihave been thinking about that since Nine Eleven.

With the hundreds of billions we have spent on Dept of Homeland Security, it is astounding that we don't have a program by which every household is issued bottles of potassium iodide.

And bottles of doxcycline, in case of anthrax attaack

Instead we have airpoort body scanners, and now mobile-street-use scanners to irradiate us.

Go figure.

It smells like Team Profit, to me.

[Tx4obama]

2. They should keep emergency doses of it at the post offices, then have the mailmen deliver it. n/t

[Johonny]

3. I gave up on Potassium Iodide after it went electric

[Electric Monk]

4. and that car commercial using their song... UGH!

[taught_me_patience]

5. The government has supplies and will distribute in an emergency. n/t

[Maru Kitteh]

6. Oh well. It's only effective when taken with triage milk anyways, and that's all been hoarded.

I guess we're all going to die.

[REP]

7. IT'S FRENCH!

[Maru Kitteh]

8. .

:rofl:

[hlthe2b]

9. It is in the National Strategic Stockpile available to any community

in the US within hours and maintained under the auspices of the CDC.

http://www.bt.cdc.gov/stockpile/

[Bluebear]

10. Tell him:

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=439x684834

[hlthe2b]

11. wow.. folks really don't understand the concept of global distirubtion

channels and that US suppliers are quite frequently totally unrelated to those of Asia, Europe and elsewhere. Geebus.

[no_hypocrisy]

12. Reminds me of the run on Tamiflu when it was the bird flu outbreak threat.

[hunter]

13. You know what's funny?

The potassium in potassium iodide is radioactive.

[Abq_Sarah]

14. Nope

It's not.

[hunter]

15. Yes, it is.

About half your natural annual exposure to radiation (depending upon where you live and what you are exposed to) comes from the radioactivity of naturally occurring potassium. If your intake of potassium is above that required for the normal functioning of your body, then your exposure to radioactive potassium is increased by that amount of potassium in your bladder and bowels that's waiting to be excreted...

[Blue-Jay]

17. One time a banana gave me cancer.

I got better.

[upi402]

18. Not so

Or Wikipedia needs your attention:

"... Primary contributions come from:

Sources in the earth. These include sources in food and water, which are incorporated in the body, and in building materials and other products that incorporate those radioactive sources;

Sources from space, in the form of cosmic rays;
Sources in the atmosphere. One significant contribution comes from the radon gas that is released from the Earth's crust and subsequently decays into radioactive atoms that become attached to airborne dust and particulates. Another contribution arises from the radioactive atoms produced in the bombardment of atoms in the upper atmosphere by high-energy cosmic rays.

Naturally occurring sources are responsible for the vast majority of radiation exposure. However, not including direct exposure from radiological imaging or therapy, about 3%<1><2> of background radiation comes from man-made sources such as:

Self-luminous dials and signs
Global radioactive contamination due to historical nuclear weapons testing
Nuclear power station or nuclear fuel reprocessing accidents
Normal operation of facilities used for nuclear power and scientific research
Emissions from burning fossil fuels, such as coal fired power plants
Emissions from nuclear medicine facilities and patients"

[Sirveri]

21. He's talking about K40, which is technically radioactive, but insignificant.

Halflife: 1.248E+9 years
Abundance: 0.0117%
Decay mode: Beta 89.28%, Electron capture 10.72%
Radiation strength is pretty weak too, .5MeV for the beta decay, electron capture is all Xrays and particle annihilations.

[Warpy]

16. There is supposedly adequate supply stockpiled.

The people who are stocking up on kelp and health food store iodine are greedy and stupid. The ones who megadose on it out of panic are greedy and stupid and will likely get sick.

I'm out west and can't say I'm particularly worried about it, but probably because I've got enough wrong with me thyroid cancer would have to go to the back of a very long line.

[upi402]

19. Just avoid milk. Also sea vegetables like kelp are sources.

I was on it by day 2.
Pharmacists had nop idea hwat I was talking about and thought I was a nut.
Supplement stores were out already -they had a run from people who didn't need to get up to speed on it I assume.

Also, the guy down the street is a radiologist. He wears a surgical mask in his car now. YMMV

[Xicano]

20. Seaweed

http://www.ryandrum.com/seaweeds.htm

[Liberal_in_LA]

22. Govt has a stockpile...enough for people living so many miles from Nuc Reactor