[ RadSafe ] Sternglass as a speaker before vet group -- was: Re: Dr. Ernest Sternglass – pioneering researcher into radioactive emissions

Fri Nov 13 09:42:40 CST 2015

Sternglass died in Feb. 2015 at age of 91.  While some of his later delusional thinking and writings might be attributed to age related dementia, he began his “career” distorting radiation related issues  50 years earlier.  Interestingly, it is not commonly known that there was a period of time in the late 1960s or early 1970s where he was RSO at the Univ. Pittsburg. I recall seeing a summary of radioactivity released by the Univ. Pittsburg prepared by Sternglass as RSO where he provided  some figures on rad releases at the University that exceeded most nuclear power plant liquid effluents.

I had the unique  experience of speaking immediately after Dr. Sternglass to an Annual meeting of the National Association of Atomic Veterans ( NAAV) being held in Washington, DC. I had been invited to speak  about the real and substantial issue of Nasal Radium Irradiation (NRI) which had been used on about 7,000 Army Air Force vets during WWII and on another group of Air Force personnel numbering at least 3,000 after WWII to minimize problems with “otic barotrauma” —inability to equalize pressure during rapid changes of pressure between the middle ear and ambient due to the Eustachian tubes being blocked due to enlarged adenoids. NRI was also used on at least 5,000 submariner trainees who could not equalize pressure during initial testing—which was a disqualifying condition for any person who wanted to become a submariner.  A typical course of radium “therapy” consisted of inserting a sealed 50 mg Ra-226 source [ 0.3 mm Monel encapsulation to maximize beta dose] bilaterally through each nostril to position the source tip in proximity to the opening of the Euschacian tube for 10 to 12 minutes, with irradiation repeated  2 to 3 times. This delivered sufficient radiation exposure (>1000 rads —10 Gy) to hypertrophied adenoids to shrink this lymphatic tissue, opening up the Eustachian tube so pressure could be equalized.     I had published a Letter-to-the-Editor of the New England Journal of Medicine in 1991 titled “Radium Exposure in U.S. Military Personnel” calling for the VA and DoD to start an outreach program to notify radium treated vets since they had a “right to know” they were at risk due to the substantial radiation dose they had received from NRI administered by the US Government, and called for the US Government to establish a registry of NRI treated vets. The Navy Bureau of Medicine and Surgery initially responded to my letter to the New England Journal of Medicine saying that NRI treated vets had “a right to privacy, not a right-to-know”. NRI exposure of children has been the subject of two Ph.D. theses at Johns Hopkins School of Public Health and a host of hormonal health impacts have been observed due to pituitary irradiation, and head and neck cancers including an Adjusted Relative Risk = 30.9 for combined benign and malignant brain tumors. NOTE: 30.9 = RR for not a 30% increase in brain tumors but a 3000% increase per a long term epidemiological study of about 800 children administered NRI.

In any case Sternglass gave a talk to the 1994 NAAV Annual Meeting preceding my talk,  that was simply astounding to behold.  Sternglass’ talk can only be described as Scaremongering to the 1000th power. He blamed radiation releases to the environment from atomic testing and nuclear power plant operations as having caused not just excess cancers, but the AIDS epidemic to develop in Africa as well as affecting academic performance of young students. 

Wow!

Stewart Farber, MSPH
Farber Medical Solutions, LLC
951 Old Clinton Rd - #20
Westbrook, CT 06498
203-441-8433 (o)

> On Nov 13, 2015, at 8:46 AM, Roger Helbig <rwhelbig at gmail.com> wrote:
> 
> Appears like Dr Sternglass has passed away or at least this seems to
> look like an obituary - if so, he appears headed for anti-nuclear
> sainthood like the late Sister Rosalie Bertell.
> 
> Roger Helbig
> 
> ---------- Forwarded message ----------
> From: nuclear-news <comment-reply at wordpress.com>
> Date: Thu, Nov 12, 2015 at 6:50 PM
> Subject: [New post] Dr. Ernest Sternglass – pioneering researcher into
> radioactive emissions
> To: rwhelbig at gmail.com
> 
> 
> Christina MacPherson posted: "Nuclear Shutdown News – October 2015,
> ObRag, by MICHAEL STEINBERG on NOVEMBER 12, 2015 Nuclear Shutdown News
> chronicles the decline of the nuclear power industry in the US and
> beyond, and highlights the efforts of those who are working to create
> a nuclear"
> 
> 
> New post on nuclear-news
> 
> Dr. Ernest Sternglass – pioneering researcher into radioactive emissions
> 
> by Christina MacPherson
> 
> Nuclear Shutdown News – October 2015, ObRag, by MICHAEL STEINBERG on
> NOVEMBER 12, 2015 Nuclear Shutdown News chronicles the decline of the
> nuclear power industry in the US and beyond, and highlights the
> efforts of those who are working to create a nuclear free future.
> 
> Millstone and Me: 2015...... The Millstone Nuclear Power Plant began
> operating in 1970. It wasn’t long before its notoriety began too, as
> its design was similar to Fukushima’s.
> 
> During the mid 1970s, the plant’s owner and operator,  CT’s Northeast
> Utilities was running Millstone reactor 1, with defective fuel rods,
> which resulted in massive releases of radiation into the air and
> water. The US Nuclear Regulator Commission NRC) knew of these
> releases, but said they were “within acceptable limits.”
> 
> Enter Sternglass Knowledge of these massive releases eventually made
> their way to Dr. Ernest Sternglass – who had been a nuclear energy
> proponent who worked for Westinghouse, which was building some of the
> first US nuclear power plants. One of these was Shippingport in
> Pennsylvania.
> 
> At first Sternglass believed that radioactive emissions from this nuke
> plant would be too low to harm people. Soon, however, he began to
> question this. First of all, reported releases from the plant were
> significantly higher than authorities had predicted.
> 
> This led Sternglass to examine vital statistics in populations living
> near the plant. There he found spikes in cancer rates emerging, as
> well in other health problems such a infant mortality and birth
> defects.
> 
> When Sternglass reported these findings to his employer, he quickly
> became persona non gratain the nuclear power industry.
> 
> Dr. Sternglass went on to become professor of radiological studies at
> the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine.
> 
> When Sternglass received the information about the Millstone ‘70s
> radioactive releases, and examined them, he became alarmed. These
> turned out to be the highest annual releases from a US nuclear power
> plant with the exception of Three Mile Island during its partial
> meltdown in 1979.
> 
> As with Shippingport, Sternglass analyzed vital statistics in
> communities surrounding Millstone. Again he found disturbing rises in
> death rates and infant mortality, as well all cancers and specific
> ones like leukemia and thyroid cancer.
> 
> Dr, Sternglass went public with his findings, and initially they
> caused quite a stir around Connecticut and New England. There were
> calls for further investigations and cries for the permanent shutdown
> of Millstone.
> 
> Dr. Ernest Sternglass continued his pioneering work into the effects
> of radiation on human health, which he reported in his brilliant book
> Secret Fallout: From Hiroshima To Three Mile Island.  Dr. Sternglass
> died in 2014.
> 
> Instead of shutting down Millstone reactor 1, Northeast Utilities
> started up 2 more reactors. In the1990s chronic mismanagement and
> harassment of whistle-blowers landed Millstone on the cover of Time
> Magazine and forced the permanent closure of reactor one.
> 
> All its high level nuclear waste, as well as that of the other 2
> units, remains on site, making it a massive nuclear dumpsite as well.
> 
> Unit 2 turned 40 this year, meaning it has exceeded the years it was
> designed to operate. Unit 3 will turn 30 next year.
> 
> Cancer rates remain high in the region, Dr, Sternglass helped start
> the Radiation and Public Health Project, which continues his work and
> has produced studies showing that people living within 50 miles of
> nuclear plnt are more likely to develop cancer and that after nuclear
> plants permanently shut down, cancer rates in populations around them
> begin to fall.
> 
> Sources:  Millstone and Me: Sex, Lies, and Radiation in Southeast
> Connecticut; 1998, Black Rain Press.
> 
> Radiation and Public Health Project:  www.radiation.org
> http://obrag.org/?p=100956#.VkTv49IrLGg
> 
> Christina MacPherson | November 12, 2015 at 7:21 pm | Categories:
> history, radiation | URL: http://wp.me/phgse-l5b
> 
> Trouble clicking? Copy and paste this URL into your browser:
> http://nuclear-news.net/2015/11/12/dr-ernest-sternglass-pioneering-researcher-into-radioactive-emissions/
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