[ RadSafe ] observations on iodized salt

Thu Mar 24 14:50:40 CDT 2011

John

You should look at the technically enhanced naturally occurring radioactive 
material(TENORM) at http://www.tenorm.com/

John***************
John R Johnson, PhD
CEO, IDIAS, Inc.
4535 West 9th Ave
Vancouver, B. C.
V6R 2E2, Canada
idias at interchange.ubc.ca

----- Original Message ----- 
From: "John Gerald Center, Jr" <john.center at wmich.edu>
To: "The International Radiation Protection (Health Physics) Mailing List" 
<radsafe at agni.phys.iit.edu>
Sent: Thursday, March 24, 2011 9:19 AM
Subject: Re: [ RadSafe ] observations on iodized salt

> Thank you all for your input.
> You helped most by helping me clarify what I was trying to get to.  I was 
> talking to some students about NORM and radioisotopes naturally in food 
> and our bodies.  When the "lite" salt thing came up again from some who 
> had taken the actual safety class.  I was trying to explain that there 
> were different types of the same thing with different 
> characteristics--isotopes.  And that these atoms can combine with other 
> atoms to form molecules that will change how they effect the body--  
> absorption abilities, etc.  I was trying to give a good explanation on why 
> the iodized salt in the mix was not why we didn't get "radiation 
> poisoning" from the potassium-40. (Besides that it was minuscule). 
> Looking at the metabolic processes involved will give me better way to 
> explain. So once again, thank you.
> John
>
>
> John G. Center, Jr.
> Radiation Safety Officer
> 3922 Wood Hall
> Western Michigan University
> 1903 W. Michigan Ave.
> Kalamazoo, MI  49008-5410
>
> Office (269) 387-5933
> Cell  (269) 744-0996
> E-mail: john.center at wmich.edu
>
> ----- Original Message -----
>> From: "Dewey L Thompson" <DThompson3 at ameren.com>
>> To: "The International Radiation Protection (Health Physics) Mailing 
>> List" <radsafe at agni.phys.iit.edu>
>> Sent: Thursday, March 24, 2011 11:59:44 AM
>> Subject: Re: [ RadSafe ] observations on iodized salt
>> John, I'm going to speculate on a couple of items.
>>
>> IF the question is whether the iodized salt is "radioactive", then no.
>> (Some of the iodized salt does use Potassium Iodide or Iodate. In this
>> case, the Potassium does have some radioactivity, but the amount added
>> is very small, and the resultant activity cannot be detected with
>> friskers and such).
>>
>> If the question is on whether or not taking iodized salt can protect
>> the person from radioactive iodine in the atmosphere, well, no. Others
>> on this list have done some napkin calculations concerning eating
>> salt, one came up with 7.5 grams of salt per day would give you 150
>> micrograms of iodine, which is the daily requirement. I'm not willing
>> to agree this is useful.
>>
>> Potassium Iodine tablets for emergency prophylaxis are 100 mg KI. The
>> regimen is 1 tablet per day, not more.
>>
>> These pills are given to the public to saturate the thyroid with
>> iodine so that the radioactive iodines in the air or their milk and
>> foodstuffs will not uptake to the thyroid. I have to assume the folks
>> that developed this regimen knew something about what they were doing,
>> and reached the dosage level of 100 mg KI per day using reasonable
>> assumptions and analysis of iodine metabolism in human beings.
>>
>> That 100 mg tablet each day inputs gives approximately 75 mg of
>> iodine. To get 75 mg of iodine from iodized table salt would mean you
>> would need to ingest a couple of kilograms of salt. That would be bad.
>>
>> If the issue is "how much iodine in the air can be harmful?" Well, let
>> us hear from some of the internal dosimetry gurus.
>>
>> FWIW
>> Dewey
>>
>> T 314.225.1061
>> F 573.676.4484
>> E DThompson3 at ameren.com
>>
>> <Snip>
>>
>> I think I didn't start out right. And I am still not sure what I am
>> asking. I and many others voluntarily take in radioactive food
>> sources. Beta and gamma emmiters with greater half lives than Iodine.
>> The concern is the thyroid with iodine if I am not mistaken. Does
>> anyone have a resource I can look to,to see specifically how Iodine is
>> absorbed and the damage it does? John
>>
>> John G. Center, Jr.
>> Radiation Safety Officer
>> 3922 Wood Hall
>> Western Michigan University
>> 1903 W. Michigan Ave.
>> Kalamazoo, MI 49008-5410
>>
>> Office (269) 387-5933
>> Cell (269) 744-0996
>> E-mail: john.center at wmich.edu
>>
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