Fukushima and Hiroshima: 40% of evacuees and rescue workers found to suffer internal exposure to radiation
Jun. 7, 2011
by Kei Kinugawa, Staff Writer
In the wake of the nuclear crisis at the Fukushima No. 1 (Daiichi) nuclear power plant, Nagasaki University Hospital in the city of Nagasaki and other institutions have made examinations of those who entered the radiation-affected areas for rescue operations, among other reasons, and evacuees from these areas to Nagasaki Prefecture. It was learned that about 40 percent of the examinees have suffered internal exposure to radiation. This is the first time that measurements of radiation levels in the body have been made public, apart from measurements involving workers at the nuclear plant. These levels of radiation are said to pose no risk to human health. On June 5, the research group of the university will report on the findings at a “Meeting on the Late Effects of the Atomic Bomb,” which will be held in downtown Hiroshima.
Since March 14, Nagasaki University Hospital has assessed the internal exposure of those evacuated from the radiation-affected areas, as well as the internal exposure of staff members of the university and Nagasaki Prefectural employees who had been dispatched to Fukushima Prefecture, with the use of whole-body counters. The analysis of the examination outcomes of 87 people who had undergone the examination by the end of March revealed the existence of radioactive iodine 131 and cesium 137, which are not detected under normal conditions, in 34 people (39%) and in 22 people (25%) respectively.
The average amount of iodine per kilogram of body weight is 8.2 becquerels and the amount of cesium is 12.5 becquerels. It is said that such levels of radiation will have no impact on the health of these subjects considering the fact that 50 to 70 becquerels of potassium 40, a radioactive substance, are found in the adult human body.
Naoki Matsuda, a professor at the Nagasaki University Center for Frontier Life Sciences and a participant in the research group, thinks: “The values of iodine and cesium were within the predictable range. I believe that these radioactive materials have been taken into the body largely via respiration.” The amount of these radioactive materials in the bodies of examinees who entered Fukushima Prefecture after April, then underwent the examination, has reportedly been close to zero.
Professor Matsuda said, “The results of early internal exposure now appear as data. Analysis of the data, in connection with the behavioral pattern of examinees, including their distance and direction from the nuclear plant and the time spent at the site, may serve future research.”
(Originally published on June 2, 2011)
Nagasaki University Hospital says: “No impact on health”
In the wake of the nuclear crisis at the Fukushima No. 1 (Daiichi) nuclear power plant, Nagasaki University Hospital in the city of Nagasaki and other institutions have made examinations of those who entered the radiation-affected areas for rescue operations, among other reasons, and evacuees from these areas to Nagasaki Prefecture. It was learned that about 40 percent of the examinees have suffered internal exposure to radiation. This is the first time that measurements of radiation levels in the body have been made public, apart from measurements involving workers at the nuclear plant. These levels of radiation are said to pose no risk to human health. On June 5, the research group of the university will report on the findings at a “Meeting on the Late Effects of the Atomic Bomb,” which will be held in downtown Hiroshima.
Since March 14, Nagasaki University Hospital has assessed the internal exposure of those evacuated from the radiation-affected areas, as well as the internal exposure of staff members of the university and Nagasaki Prefectural employees who had been dispatched to Fukushima Prefecture, with the use of whole-body counters. The analysis of the examination outcomes of 87 people who had undergone the examination by the end of March revealed the existence of radioactive iodine 131 and cesium 137, which are not detected under normal conditions, in 34 people (39%) and in 22 people (25%) respectively.
The average amount of iodine per kilogram of body weight is 8.2 becquerels and the amount of cesium is 12.5 becquerels. It is said that such levels of radiation will have no impact on the health of these subjects considering the fact that 50 to 70 becquerels of potassium 40, a radioactive substance, are found in the adult human body.
Naoki Matsuda, a professor at the Nagasaki University Center for Frontier Life Sciences and a participant in the research group, thinks: “The values of iodine and cesium were within the predictable range. I believe that these radioactive materials have been taken into the body largely via respiration.” The amount of these radioactive materials in the bodies of examinees who entered Fukushima Prefecture after April, then underwent the examination, has reportedly been close to zero.
Professor Matsuda said, “The results of early internal exposure now appear as data. Analysis of the data, in connection with the behavioral pattern of examinees, including their distance and direction from the nuclear plant and the time spent at the site, may serve future research.”
(Originally published on June 2, 2011)
