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Answer to Question #350 Submitted to "Ask the Experts"Category: Nuclear Power — Nuclear Accidents The following question was answered by an expert in the appropriate field: Q
Would ingestion of iodized, common table salt be effective in a nuclear accident if KI pills are not available?
A
The daily dose of potassium iodide (KI) for thyroid blocking is 130 mg per day for up to two weeks. This equates to 96 mg of iodine (I). Iodized salt contains about 0.085 mg of KI per gram of salt (according to the Morton Salt Company). To get the I equivalent of a 130 mg KI pill would require the ingestion of 1,529 grams of salt which would most likely be fatal. According to research by Health Physicist Ken Miller, Hershey Medical Center, a person can get a blocking dose of iodine by painting 8 ml of either tincture of iodine or providone iodine (betadine) scrub on the forearm daily.
William Kirk, PhD, CHP Pennsylvania Bureau of Radiation Protection
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