Columnists :: Holistically Speaking
Natural ways to fight radiation Wednesday Apr 20, 2011 Can you recommend any natural ways we can protect ourselves from radiation? I’m concerned about my family’s health in light of the nuclear reactor failure in Japan. I remember being in grade school and taking monthly iodine pills (the chocolate ones were the best!) in order to prevent any ill health effects from radiation. Are there any other options?
There definitely are some natural approaches to protecting our bodies from harmful radiation effects. The thyroid gland quickly absorbs radioactive iodine, which can be damaging. This was a major contributor to health problems after the Chernobyl disaster in 1986. The thyroid can also absorb protective iodine in a variety of forms:
•Sea vegetables: eat nori, put wakame, kombu, and hijiki in your soups and stews. The iodine in kelp helps draw out the radiation and protect your thyroid from radioactive uptake. This is a great time to explore sushi made with sea vegetables if you haven’t already tried it. All sea veggies contain healthy iodine as well as other trace minerals that protect the body by bolstering our resistance.
•Daikon radish and burdock root also convey protective effects and has detoxifying properties. These can be used in soups or grated and added to your salads.
•Herbs: if you’re inclined to take an herbal approach, some great allies are nettle tea, cilantro (it helps draw heavy metals out) or milk thistle (helps your liver process toxins).
•Potassium iodide: is a salt available in liquid or tablet form. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommend using potassium iodide only in the event of a public health emergency. You can read more about this at the following site: http://www.bt.cdc.gov/radiation/emergencyfaq.asp#potassium Because of the potential risks of iodine (side effects such as digestive problems, rashes or reactions of your salivary glands), using potassium iodide should not be done routinely. Some individuals may have thyroid disease or other risk factors that make taking this salt potentially unsafe for them. A good site to learn more can be found at: http://news.nationalpost.com/2011/03/14/post-primer-how-iodine-tablets-help-protect-against-radiation-exposure/
Overall, keeping your immune system healthy is a good approach to minimizing your risk of radiation exposure. Integrating mushrooms into your diet will help because of their special polysaccharides that boost immunity. They can be used along with sea vegetables in your miso soup; this is the soup you can get at Japanese restaurants.
Drinking several glasses of water each day can be beneficial and boost your immune system by sleeping well, eating garlic and Vitamin C rich foods, and keep your sweet tooth under control.
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