Japan earthquake: Britons given iodine tablets Priority for the tablets is being given to children

[nadinbrzezinski]

The Foreign Office said it was a "contingency measure" and people should only take the tablets if and when advised by the authorities.

Embassy staff were distributing tablets in Tokyo and Sendai on Saturday, and will be in Niigata on Sunday.

The earthquake and tsunami is known to have killed more than 7,300 people.

Fears have been rising over levels of radiation leaking from the Fukushima Dai-ichi nuclear plant which was hit by the 9.0-magnitude earthquake on 11 March.

The earthquake and tsunami it triggered crippled the plant's cooling systems, and some radiation has leaked.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-12794541?utm_source=twitterfeed&utm_medium=twitter

Not surprised either... remember they are IN JAPAN though.

[lbrtbell]

1. Those people should've been out of the country days ago - n/t

[nadinbrzezinski]

2. Getting 10K out is not easy, unless you use ships

sadly.

And a few are probably expats who don't want to

[hedgehog]

3. The Britsh Foreign Office has potassium iodide tablets in Japan, why?

[Bosonic]

4. Tip off from Mystic Meg?

Deluxe Harrods First aid kits??

[hedgehog]

6. It would seem to me that if the British Government just flew in the

tablets, they would be flying them in for an ally in distress and distributing them to the people near the plant. What seems to be happening is distribution of a small number of tablets kept stockpiled in Japan. I find that rather disturbing.

[Bosonic]

7. Keeping a small stockpile of KI tablets

in a seismically active nation dotted with fission power stations seems prudent not disturbing, but that's just me.

I don't know where you're coming from, but contrary to Hollywood sterotypes not all Brits are charming villains.

[WatsonT]

8. Well obviously not *all* of them are charming villains

some are charming special agents.

[nadinbrzezinski]

9. They flew them in from Bristish stock

most likely.

[Bluebear]

11. They put them on a BA flight from London to Tokyo?

[howaboutme]

5. Its about inspiring false confidence

These KI tablets are about politicians inspiring false confidence. Like facing poisonous gas and having the government tell you to take an aspirin twice a day. They provide minimal protection and the thyroid will be the least of your problems once faced with radiation poisoning.

http://www.bt.cdc.gov/radiation/ki.asp

What KI cannot do: Knowing what KI cannot do is also important. KI cannot prevent radioactive iodine from entering the body. KI can protect only the thyroid from radioactive iodine, not other parts of the body. KI cannot reverse the health effects caused by radioactive iodine once damage to the thyroid has occurred. KI cannot protect the body from radioactive elements other than radioactive iodine—if radioactive iodine is not present, taking KI is not protective.

Adults: Adults older than 40 years should not take KI unless public health or emergency management officials say that contamination with a very large dose of radioactive iodine is expected. Adults older than 40 years have the lowest chance of developing thyroid cancer or thyroid injury after contamination with radioactive iodine. They also have a greater chance of having allergic reactions to KI.

[nadinbrzezinski]

10. It protects you, sort off, from ONE type of cancer

nobody claims they protect from all.