Radiation exposure natural treatment with vitamins, herbs, supplements, potassium iodide, use of alternative medicine, prevention
October 1 2018 by Ray Sahelian, M.D.

Radiation exposure comes from various sources. Are there natural or alternative ways to minimize harm to the body, tissues and central nervous system?
Cellular damage occurs when people undergo CT scans, but whether or not this causes cancer or any other health problems is unclear. The use of medical imaging for heart disease has exploded in the past decade. These tests expose patients to a non-trivial amount of low-dose radiation but it is unclear exactly how much damage this low-dose radiation does to the patient.

Use of antioxidants, herbs, and dietary supplements
Ionizing radiation (IR) generates free radicals that interact randomly with a range of intracellular biomolecules that can result in lethal cellular injury. Therefore, IR-inflicted damage is a highly complex interplay of vastly different harmful physiological processes, including inflammation, epithelial regeneration, tissue remodeling, and fibrosis. The development of safe and effective radioprotectors that protect normal tissues following IR exposure is highly desirable. Dietary supplementation with an antioxidant (AOX) diet containing selenium, α-lipoic acid, NAC, sodium ascorbate, and vitamin E is an effective countermeasure to lethality in mice following γ-radiation and proton radiation.

Curr Radiopharm. 2018. Evaluating the radioprotective effect of curcumin on rat's heart tissues. Curcumin reduces radiation-induced heart injury markers in rats.

Radiation treatment and damage, prevention with dietary supplements
Anticancer Res. 2015. Nutritional Supplement Based on Zinc, Prebiotics, Probiotics and Vitamins to Prevent Radiation-related Gastrointestinal Disorders. The present phase II study aimed to evaluate the tolerance and safety of Dixentil, a nutritional supplement based on zinc with the addition of prebiotics (galacto-oligosaccharides), tyndalized probiotics (Lactobacillus acidophilus and L. casei) and vitamins B1, B2 and B6, and nicotinamide), given as prophylaxis to patients undergoing pelvic radiotherapy and its efficacy in the prevention and reduction of radiation-related gastrointestinal disorders. Forty consecutive patients who were candidates for pelvic radiotherapy received Dixentil before starting and during radiotherapy. The primary end-point was to evaluate the safety and tolerance of Dixentil. Secondary end-points were incidence and severity of radiation-induced diarrhea and number of patients who discontinued radiotherapy because of diarrhea. Radiation-induced enteritis occurred in 17 patients, grade I and grade II diarrhea was documented in 14 and 3 patients respectively; no grade III or IV diarrhea was observed. Radiotherapy was discontinued due to treatment-induced enteritis only in two patients for 6 days. Use of Dixentil is an easy, safe, and feasible approach to protect patients against the risk of radiation-induced diarrhea.

Danger and risk
Recently there has been a scare about such radiation coming from nuclear power plants in Japan. Many people in the United States are starting to get concerned but... There is no need for anyone in the United States to take iodine pills. If you live near a nuclear facility and concerned that in the future some earthquake or natural disaster could occur, you could keep a bottle of iodine or iodide in the house.

People do not realize that there is a significantly higher risk by getting in the car to go to a store to buy iodide, driving on the road, inhaling pollutants, possible car accident, etc., than the exposure risk of infinitesimally small amount of radioactive iodine in the air from the Japan fallout.

Japan has decided to raise its assessment of the accident at the crippled Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant from 5 to the worst rating of 7 on an international scale, putting the disaster on par with Chernobyl.

Japan nuclear meltdown radiation concern
Despite the nuclear crisis in Japan, it is doubtful that enough harmful radiation would flow several thousand miles to the West Coast of the United States such as California, Oregon and Washington state and be concentrated enough to cause problems.
   The United States is "not expected to experience any harmful levels of radioactivity," the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission has stated. Even with the radiation levels around the plant being at Chernobyl-like levels, Japan's disaster will not pose a health hazard to the United States.
   Radioactive iodine gets into the human body not necessarily by inhaling but by eating contaminated food. It falls to the ground, cows eat it and make milk with radioactive iodine. Very little comes from inhalation (it has a half life of 8 days). The epidemic of thyroid cancer and other cancers around Chernobyl could have been mostly prevented if the Russian government had stopped children and adults from drinking locally produced milk. Radioactive iodine comes in the body mostly through food grown on contaminated land and from milk by cows who have grazed on such land.

The accident at the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant occurred after the Great East Japan Earthquake on 11 March 2011, releasing a large amount of radioactive materials into the atmosphere. Questions were raised regarding the health effects of radiation exposure, which led to increased anxiety among the Fukushima residents about the possible development of thyroid cancer.

Iodine and potassium iodide
Some experts claim taking potassium iodide or iodine supplements may reduce the risk for thyroid cancer from exposure. I still need to review this topic more to know if taking iodine pills, including in the form of potassium iodide, are of any benefit or perhaps could cause side effects that are worse than not taking them in the first place. Iodine is recommended only for children and pregnant women during acute radioactive iodine exposure in the setting of a nuclear disaster.

It is not recommended for people over the age of 40 since the risk of developing thyroid cancer takes several decades after radioactive iodine exposure. For persons older than 40 years of age, the risk for radiation-induced thyroid cancer is extremely low, while the potential side effects of supplementation are much higher. Adults over 40 therefore do not need to take potassium iodide as prophylaxis for exposure to I-131.
   Potassium iodide is medicinally supplied in 130 mg tablets for emergency purposes. The nutritional requirement for iodine is only 150 micrograms or 0.15 mg of iodide per day.
   Potassium iodide is a form of iodine used in tablet form. You can also get iodine from sea kelp. The International Atomic Energy Agency said that Japan had distributed millions of units of stable iodine to evacuation centers near the damaged nuclear plant.
   Iodine pills are only effective at keeping the thyroid gland from absorbing radioactive iodine which can cause thyroid cancer. It does nothing to prevent other side effects of a nuclear fallout. They are not a radiation antidote and offer no protection against radioactive elements such as caesium.
   Some radioactive materials are readily absorbed by the body and linger there. Radioactive iodine, for example, goes to the thyroid gland, and strontium to bone, and they emit radiation inside the body that over time can lead to cancer or leukemia. Other radioactive materials, like tritium, pass quickly through the body.

Potassium iodide side effects
Excess intake of potassium iodide can be harmful to people with allergies to iodine and could trigger thyroid problems in other people.
   U.S. poison control centers are starting to receive reports of illness in people who’ve ingested the drug aimed at protecting against radiation sickness. At least seven people have reported reactions to the drug, often called by its chemical name, KI, including two who said they were suffering from serious symptoms including vomiting, racing heart and dizziness or vertigo.

There are only three FDA-approved potassium iodide products that protect against radiation. The agency's website identifies them as Iosat, made by Anbex; ThyroSafe from Recipharm AB; and ThyroShield from Fleming & Co.At all three companies, the products are currently out of stock.

What to take if you suspect exposure to radiation
Few studies are available to determine what supplements alone or in combination and in what dosages are ideal to take when one suspects exposure to radiation. Until more definitive research is done, I think the following should be considered. I also recommend you read this article on natural supplements for the prevention or treatment of cancer. There are countless other pollutants, pesticides, toxins, etc., in our environment that can cause health problems, and, as of now, radiation from Japan should be your least concern if you live in the United States or live several hundred miles away from northern Japan.

Antioxidants of all types could be of benefit. There are so many of them including the common vitamins C and E, alpha lipoic acid, acetyl l carnitine, carnosine, acetyl l cysteine, and others. It is difficult to predict which one or which combination and in what dosages would be most effective.
Broccoli sprout extracts could be of benefit
Calcium D glucorate supplements should be considered.
Carotenoids are substances found in plants that have antioxidant and anti-tumor benefits.
Citrus bioflavanoids can be helpful.
Curcumin (an antioxidant and anti-inflammatory compound found in the spice turmeric) may help protect against radiation-induced damage to the skin. Consider eating more curry.
DIM or diindolylmethane is a substance naturally found in cruciferous vegetables such as broccoli, Brussels sprouts and cabbage. When an indole 3 carbinol supplement is ingested, it converts in the gut into diindolylmethane.
Garlic, preferably raw, has potent anti cancer and anti-infection substances.
Ginger has been shown to protect rodents from radiation induced sickness and death.
Flavonoids are substances found in plants that have antioxidant and anti-tumor benefits.
Add different spices to your recipes.

Food, diet and lifestyle suggestions as treatment for radiation exposure or to minimize the harm
To protect your health and protect against side effects during radiation therapy or exposure:

Try to get deep and good sleep
Follow a healthy diet rich in nutrients including plenty of fresh vegetables and juices, along with a number of culinary spices. I would also consider eating more berries, such as blueberry, blackberry, acai, and others. Mushrooms are known to have anti-cancer potential and adding these to your diet could be of benefit.
Try not to panic and keep a low stress demeanor, high stress can make things worse.

Worst case scenario
A meltdown in Japan would be harmful to the local environment. Should there be a release of radiation, and should winds blow in the wrong direction, residents of Japan would be affected to some degree. But the effects almost certainly will not go far beyond the borders of Japan.

Sources of ionizing radiation
People may be exposed to ionizing radiation from several sources:

Natural background radiation comes from cosmic rays from our solar system and radioactive elements normally present in the soil. This is the major contributor to worldwide radiation exposure.

Medical radiation comes in the form of diagnostic x-rays and other tests, as well as from radiation therapy. Radiation therapy is currently used to treat some types of cancer and involves dosages many thousand times higher than those used in diagnostic x-rays.

The average radiation exposure a person gets from natural sources is about 3 millisieverts; in the United States, a person typically gets a total of 6 millisieverts because of medical diagnostic procedures and other man-made sources of radiation. The limit for occupational radiation exposure among workers who deal with radioactive material is 50 millisieverts.

A chest X-ray delivers a dose of about .02 millisieverts, and a CT to the abdomen carries 8 millisieverts. These procedures don't last very long; prolonged exposure would be more dangerous.

Risk for cancer
High-dose exposure, above 500 millisieverts, has been associated with leukemia, breast, bladder, colon, liver, lung, esophagus, ovarian, multiple myeloma, and stomach cancers..

United States radiation levels
March 18 - Tiny amounts of adioactive particles have reached California, about a billion times beneath levels that would be health threatening.

March 17 - Low concentrations of radioactive particles are heading eastwards from Japan's disaster-hit nuclear power plant and are expected to reach North America in days. Lars-Erik De Geer, research director at the Swedish Defence Research Institute, says that the levels were not dangerous, he predicted the particles would continue across the Atlantic and eventually also reach Europe.

The South Coast Air Quality Management District (AQMD) reported that monitors have not detected an increase in radiation along the Southern California coast.

Questions
Q. We are living in Tokyo. After the last year earthquake and tsunami and the following supposed radiation contamination of the city Tokyo, there are lot of views going on about detoxyfing and the supplements for daily life. We have a ten year old son. We hear a lot of of talk going on about zeolite being a good chemical or medicine to pull out radioactive elements if it had entered the human body through food or air.If zeolite can pull out these heave elements like radioactive strontium, or cesium or other radioactive elements from the human body, does it have any side effects? are they good or harmful, particularly for the children? When i browsed the internet for zeolite as a medicine, I came upon your website. Can you please suggest as to what would be the best medicine/supplement to detoxify the body or help to remove the radioactive chemicals from the body, without any bad side effects? I would be extremely happy and grateful if you can help in this subject, during these trying times in Tokyo.

I just read an article you wrote about risks of overexposure to x-rays and ct scans. My son will be three on the 23rd. He has several medical problems and has had many x-rays, ct scans, mri scans, ultrasounds, a vcug and a shuntogram. I believe he has had about 30 or so xrays on feet and hips, cpl ct scans of head, scoliosis x-ray of spine, chest x-rays, abdominal x-rays, head x-rays, 2 VCUGs, a shuntogram, few MRIs and several ultrasounds. My question is, how at risk is he for getting cancer or other problems associated with radiation or any of the scans he had?
   It's difficult to predict.