It has been five years since the nuclear meltdown of the Fukushima I Nuclear Power Plant in Japan caused by the devastating tsunami that took almost half a million lives and billions of dollars worth of damage – but today more than just its memory still lingers on.
Today, scientists are still monitoring those that have been affected by the Fukushima nuclear meltdown, releasing radioactive material into the environment and recent studies show that although the impacts of the meltdown on health were common, it was not as much as it was expected through the years.
On that fateful day of March 12, 2011 an alarm heard for miles sounded through the air and initiate a mass evacuation for the 100,000 people situated within a 20-kilometer radius of the nuclear power plant, while those living within the 30-kilometer area were advised to stay indoors due to risk of possible radiation exposure.
A few months later, the University of Fukushima conducted medical screening activities on children from the Fukushima Prefecture and found that almost half of the 300,746 children were found positive with cysts on their thyroid system- believed to be caused by exposure to radioactive iodine 131.
But these numbers were not as much as the one that was caused by the Chernobyl meltdown years back, indicating that the increase in rates were merely due to sampling and could not be pinpointed to the direct effects of the Fukushima nuclear meltdown itself.
Dillwyn Williams, a thyroid cancer specialist from Cambridge University, said that evidence found in tests of the Fukushima incident indicated that most for the cases discovered were not due to direct radiation, surmising that most of the radiation was blown out to sea.
Williams also believes that the biggest threat on the aftermath and beyond are not the effects of cancer due to radiation, but on the impacts of “mental and social well-being” as a result of the massive relocation and displacement of those affected.
Here are some practical things to do in the event of a nuclear meltdown.
Minimize exposure to radiation by establishing a fair amount of distance between you and the fallout site. The farther you are away, the lesser chance of you getting exposed.
Make sure to prepare an evacuation kit that often contains first aids medication, a 72-hour water supply and food to keep you going.
Establish a good fallout plan from inception to sustainability of resources. This will help avoid panic situations.
The post New Evidence Points To Reduced Health Concerns on Nuclear Meltdown appeared first on NUTRITION CLUB CANADA.
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