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Potassium iodide pills prevent radioactive iodine from building up in the thyroid, reducing the risk of thyroid cancer. Recommended doses vary by age. It does not protect against radiation harm, but was used successfully in Poland after the Chernobyl disaster. Other steps to avoid radiation poisoning include covering the shelter with dirt and filtering water, but filtering air is not a priority.
Potassium iodide is the active ingredient in “fallout pills,” pills that prevent radioactive iodine from building up in the thyroid, which can cause thyroid cancer. Potassium iodide pills or potassium iodide powder should be consumed in regular doses if you might be exposed to radiation, such as during a nuclear war. The recommended oral dose is 16 mg for children aged less than one month, 32 mg for children aged 1 to 36 months, 65 mg for children aged 3 to 12 years and 130 mg for adults. In the United States, whether to store potassium iodide for possible use during a nuclear war or transpacific fallout from an overseas war is a statewide decision made by governors. Outside of the US, stock varies by country.
Potassium iodide tastes bad and is a mild irritant. It should be handled with gloves to avoid skin irritation. To make it more palatable, mix it with sugar water or just water. It is important to realize that potassium iodide does not protect someone from radiation harm, it only reduces the chance that trace amounts of inhaled or ingested radioactive iodine (released in ground-level nuclear explosions or nuclear accidents) will build up in the thyroid gland and cause cancer. Because the thyroid can only hold a limited amount of iodide, the potassium iodide salt keeps the thyroid busy, preventing it from concentrating any radioactive iodine that gets ingested. The type of iodine used to clean wounds, molecular iodine, is poisonous, offers no protective benefits, and should never be consumed.
Potassium iodide’s ability to prevent thyroid cancer during radiological emergencies was demonstrated following the Chernobyl nuclear reactor disaster in April 1986, when 10.5 million children and 7 million adults in Poland received a saturated solution of potassium iodide as a prophylactic measure against the accumulation of radioactive radiation. iodine in the thyroid. The US FDA approved the use of potassium iodide as protection against thyroid cancer in 1982.
There are other steps you can take to avoid radiation poisoning while in a high protection factor fallout shelter. In addition to making sure the roof is covered with at least 3 feet of dirt, be sure to strain all water through a double-ended can or barrel containing two feet of dirt dug more than four inches below the ground. Filtering the air isn’t a top priority, as the most dangerous fallout particles are heavy, the size of small pebbles, and won’t float in a shelter. Small particles of aerosol fallout pose minimal danger. A more useful application for filters would be to keep flies, mosquitoes and other pests out of a shelter. Filters shouldn’t block the airflow too much, as ventilation (including a large exhaust hole) is probably a top priority in any crowded or small fallout shelter.
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