Radiation and other environmental disasters

Yesterday morning I was woken up by a friend of mine calling me to say he needed a prescription. I asked him what was wrong and how I could help him. He said that he had been reading about the nuclear power plants in Japan having a meltdown and that we were expected to receive the radiation in about 36 hours. He wanted a prescription for potassium iodide to protect his thyroid. I began the process of researching the disaster to see what was up.

 People who lived through Chernobyl developed a high rate of thyroid cancer. Those who had received potassium iodide in Poland apparently didn’t get thyroid cancer. Suddenly many people here in the bay area began looking for potassium iodide to protect their thyroids in case of nuclear fallout.

 There was a bit of a panic locally because everyone had bought all the potassium iodide and seaweed they could get their hands on. One friend had even gotten a Geiger counter on her computer to let her know if the radiation had reached dangerous levels.

 The whole thing got me thinking about major disasters and how we can be better prepared. Its clear to me that when we face a crisis, many people don’t trust our government agencies to take care of us and make sure that we have the right information.

 I’m often writing columns about protecting our immune system and making sure that it is strong for preventing flu’s and other infectious illnesses that come our way. In the case of any sort of environmental disaster, including one such as this where radiation might come leaking, the same is true. We need to make sure that we take good care of our immune system. It is our immune system that defends us against all the possibilities of illness. Hundreds of cancer cells are made in our bodies every day. It is our immune system that scavenges constantly looking for wayward cells to keep us from growing a tumor. When our immune system goes to sleep, the cells can grow.

 Taking potassium iodide lowers the thyroid’s chance of absorbing radioactive iodine, which might increase its chance of getting cancer but it won’t protect the rest of your body.

 Our best defense in a time of crisis is a good offense. Being ready and prepared for a disaster is the best way to make sure that we will survive it. Our community disaster preparedness center tells us about having water, food, and supplies on hand to be ready. It suggests that we form agreements and plans about where to rendezvous with our friends and family so that we can just go there. Having a good plan in place for your physical health is also necessary. Often I meet people who say they want to be healthy but they “don’t want to take any pills.”  I don’t argue with them but here is a case for taking pills. Antioxidants will help protect you against cancer and help keep your immune system healthy.

 Of course the first thing to do for good health is to make sure that you eat healthy food, and get plenty of exercise. Beyond that, the extras are to make sure that you have some basic nutrients and antioxidants every day, as insurance against our toxic environment. Basics like omega fatty acids, Vitamin D and Vitamin C, are extremely helpful in caring for our immunity. Beyond that, certain antioxidants specialize in helping different areas of the body in addition to helping our immune systems. N.Acetyl Cysteine is good for the liver. Alpha Lipoic Acid – helps the liver and sugar metabolism. CoQ10- helps the heart and the gums. Pycnogenol – is good for the circulation and protects the blood vessels.

 In the face of so many disasters on our planet, it’s sometimes hard to keep up with all the dangers we face. Whether we are directly involved in the event or not, with our planetary connectivity, we can’t help but feel what’s going on everywhere. Most important for our own survival is keeping ourselves emotionally and spiritually balanced as much as possible. When something occurs that endangers our loved ones, or us how can we make the most compassionate loving choices to help as many people as possible?