Potassium Iodide for that nuclear headache

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If you need a good, low cost source for potassium iodide this is it:

http://www.kyantec.com/index.html

The following is good info taken from http://www.y2ksurvival.com/ on the use of KI -

"0 Ways to obtain potassium iodide for prophylactic use.

* By prescription.

With a prescription from a doctor, a U.S.P. saturated solution of potassium iodide can be bought at many pharmacies today. (In a crisis, the present local supplies would be entirely inadequate.) The saturated solution contains a very small amount of a compound that prevents it from deteriorating significantly for a few years. It is best stored in a dark glass bottle with a solid, non-metallic cap that screws on liquid-tight. A separate medicine dropper should be kept in the same place. An authoritative publication36 of the National Committee on Radiation Protection and Measurements states: "Supplies of potassium iodide can be stored in a variety of places, including homes,..."

In 1990 the price of a 2-ounce bottle of U.S.P. saturated solution of potassium iodide, which is sold by prescription only, ranges from about $7.00 to $11.00 in Colorado. A 2-ounce bottle contains about 500 drops. Four drops provide the daily dose of 130 mg for adults and for children older than one year. For babies less than one year old, the daily dose of a saturated solution is two drops (65 mg). Thus approximately 99% effective protection against the subsequent uptake of radioactive iodine by the thyroid can be gotten by taking saturated potassium iodide solution. If bought by prescription, today the recommended daily dose costs 6 to 9 cents.

* Without prescription.

In 1990 the leading company selling 130-mg potassium iodide tablets without prescription and by mail order in the United States is ANBEX, Inc., P.O. Box 861, Cooper Station, New York, N.Y. 10276. Two bottles, each containing fourteen 130-mg potassium iodide tablets, cost $10.00. Thus the cost per 24-hour dose is 36 cents. To the best of my knowledge, the company in the U.S. that in July of 1990 is selling 130-mg KI tablets without prescription at the lowest price is Preparedness Products, 3855 South 500 West, Bldg. G, Salt Lake City, Utah 84115. This company sells 14 tablets, in a brown, screw-cap glass bottle, for $3.50, postpaid, including shipping charges. For three or more bottles, the price is $2.50 per bottle.

After the disastrous Russian nuclear power reactor accident at Chernobyl in May of 1986, pharmacies in Sweden soon sold all of their 130- mg potassium iodide tablets and Poland limited its inadequate supplies of prophylactic iodide salts to the protection of children. In California, pharmacists reported abnormally large sales of iodine tablets, and also of tincture of iodine- apparently due to the buyers' having been misinformed by the media's reports that Europeans were taking "iodine" for protection.

Individuals can buy chemical reagent grade potassium iodide, that is purer than the pharmaceutical grade, from some chemical supply firms. No prescription or other authorization is necessary. In 1990 the least expensive source of which I am aware is NASCO, 901 Jamesville Avenue, Fort Atkinson, Wisconsin 53538. The price for 100 grams (100,000 mg) in 1990 is $10.50, plus $2.00 to $4.00 for shipping costs. Thus the cost in 1990 for a 130-mg daily dose is less than 2 cents. NASCO sells 500 grams (500,000 mg- about one pound) for $35.50, plus $2.00 to $4.00 for shipping-making the cost per standard daily dose only one cent.

For years of storage, crystalline or granular potassium iodide is better than a saturated solution. Dry potassium iodide should be stored in a dark bottle with a gasketed, non-metallic cap that screws on tightly. Two-fluid-ounce bottles, filled with dry potassium iodide as described below, are good sizes for a family. Separate medicine droppers should be kept with stored bottles.

Thus at low cost you can buy and store enough potassium iodide for your family and large numbers of your friends and neighbors- as I did years ago.

0 Practical expedient ways to prepare and take daily prophylactic doses of a saturated solution of potassium iodide.

To prepare a saturated solution of potassium iodide, fill a bottle about 60% full of crystalline or granular potassium iodide. (A 2-fluid-ounce bottle, made of dark glass and having a solid, non-metallic, screwcap top, is a good size for a family.

Book Page: 115

About 2 ounces of crystalline or granular potassium iodide is needed to fill a 2-fluid-ounce bottle about 60% full.) Next, pour safe, room-temperature water into the bottle until it is about 90% full. Then close the bottle tightly and shake it vigorously for at least 2 minutes. Some of the solid potassium iodide should remain permanently undissolved at the bottom of the bottle; this is proof that the solution is saturated.

Experiments with a variety of ordinary household medicine droppers determined that 1 drop of a saturated solution of potassium iodide contains from 28 to 36 mg of potassium iodide. The recommended expedient daily doses of a saturated solution (approximately 130 mg for adults and children older than one year, and 65 mg for babies younger than one year) are as follows:

* For adults and children older than one year, 4 drops of a saturated solution of potassium iodide each 24 hours.

* For babies younger than one year, 2 drops of a saturated solution of potassium iodide each 24 hours.

Potassium iodide has a painfully bad taste, so bad that a single crystal or 1 drop of the saturated solution in a small child's mouth would make him cry. (A small child would be screaming in pain before he could eat enough granular or crystalline KI to make him sick. Some KI tablets are coated and tasteless.) Since many persons will not take a bad tasting medication, especially if no short-term health hazards are likely to result from not taking it, the following two methods of taking a saturated solution are recommended:

* Put 4 drops of the solution into a glass of milk or other beverage, stir, and drink quickly. Then drink some of the beverage with nothing added. If only water is available, use it in the same manner.

* If bread is available, place 4 drops of the solution on a small piece of it; dampen and mold it into a firm ball the size of a large pea, about 3A inch in diameter. There is almost no taste if this "pill" is swallowed quickly with water. (If the pill is coated with margarine, there is no taste.)

As stated before, 4 drops of the saturated solution provide a dose approximately equal to 130 mg of potassium iodide.

0 Preparing potassium iodide tablets to give to infants and small children.

The official FDA instructions for using KI tablets state that one half of a 130-mg tablet, "first crushed", should be given every 24 hours to "babies under one year of age", and that a whole tablet should be crushed "for small children."

Putting even a small fraction of a crushed or pulverized potassium iodide tablet on one's tongue is a startling experience, with a burning sensation. A slightly burnt sensation continues for hours. Therefore, a mother is advised to make this experiment where her children cannot see her.

To eliminate the painfully bad taste of a crushed or pulverized KI tablet, first pulverize it thoroughly. Next stir it for a minute into at least 2 ounces of milk, orange juice, or cold drink, to make sure that the KI (a salt) is completely dissolved. Then the taste is not objectionable. If only water is available, stir the pulverized tablet into more than 2 ounces of water.

KI is a corrosive salt, more injurious than aspirin to tissue with which it is in direct contact. Some doctors advise taking KI tablets after meals, except when so doing would delay taking the initial dose during an emergency. All recognize that taking a dilute solution of KI is easier on the stomach than taking the same dose in tablet form. This may be a consequential consideration when taking KI for weeks during a prolonged nuclear war emergency.

0 WARNINGS

* Elemental (free) iodine is poisonous, except in the very small amounts in water disinfected with iodine tablets or a few drops of tincture of iodine. Furthermore, elemental iodine supplied by iodine tablets and released by tincture of iodine dropped into water is not effective as a blocking agent to prevent thyroid damage. If you do not have any potassium iodide, DO NOT TAKE IODINE TABLETS OR TINCTURE OF IODINE.

* DO NOT MAKE A FUTILE, HARMFUL ATTEMPT TO EAT ENOUGH IODIZED SALT TO RESULT IN THYROID BLOCKING. Iodized salt contains potassium iodide, but in such a low concentration that it is impossible to eat enough iodized salt to be helpful as a blocking agent.

OTHER WAYS TO PREVENT THYROID DAMAGE

Besides the prophylactic use of potassium iodide, the following are ways to prevent or reduce thyroid damage under peacetime or wartime conditions:

Book Page: 116

* Do not drink or otherwise use fresh milk produced by cows that have consumed feed or water consequentially contaminated with fall- out or other radioactive material resulting from a peacetime accident or from nuclear explosions in a war.

* As a general rule, do not eat fresh vegetables until advised it is safe to do so. If under wartime conditions no official advice is obtainable, avoid eating fresh leafy vegetables that were growing or exposed at the time of fallout deposition; thoroughly wash all vegetables and fruits.

* If a dangerously radioactive air mass is being blown toward your area and is relatively small (as from some possible nuclear power facility accidents), and if there is time, an ordered evacuation of your area may make it unnecessary even to take potassium iodide.

* For protection against inhaled radioactive iodine, the FDA Final Recommendations (which are mentioned in the preceding section) state that the following measures "should be considered": "..sheltering [merely staying indoors can significantly reduce inhaled doses], evacuation, respiratory protection, and/or the use of stable iodide."

Research has been carried out in an effort to develop a thyroid protection procedure based on the ordinary iodine solutions which are used as disinfectants. Since iodine solutions such as tincture of iodine and povidone-iodine are dangerous poisons if taken orally, these experiments have utilized absorption through the skin after topical application on bare skin.

All reported experimental topical applications on human skin have given less thyroid protection than does proper oral administration of potassium iodide. Moreover, undesirable side effects of skin application can be serious. For these reasons researchers to date have not recommended a procedure for the use of ordinary iodine solutions for thyroid protection.

Potassium iodide, when obtained in the crystalline reagent form and used as recommended above on pages 114 and 115, is safe, inexpensive, and easy to administer. Prudent individuals should obtain and keep ready for use an adequate supply of potassium iodide well in advance of a crisis."

I hope this is helpful.



-- Damon Devine (ddevine@impulse.net), November 19, 1999

Answers

Since I seem to be having a problem "copying & pasting" to this forum, here is the contact number for Antec, Inc. 800-448-2954

100 grams will cost you about $15 dollars and will give you enough supply for you, your family, your friends and neighbors. Be sure to ask for chemical reagent grade potassium iodide.

-- Damon Devine (ddevine@impulse.net), November 19, 1999.


Here's a better and cheaper source:

www.medicalcorps.org

They sell a better formulation (KI03) Potassium Iodate -- longer shelf life and NOT bitter. It's about 10-15 bucks for 100 tablets!

Good Luck!

-- Richard Michael (rbad@eclipse.net), November 19, 1999.


For what it's worth:

I was warned not to purchase the KIO3. The Iodate form has not been fully tested, whereas the Iodide was used in Chernobyl, TMI, etc. The Iodide has been proven a safe and effective means to block the thyroid.

-- (jlinn@aol.com), November 19, 1999.


For what it's worth, I checked out the website for Medical Corps and they had this phone number: 740-732-5497 listed; the operator said it was no longer in service. Hhmmm. That seemed odd.

-- Marsha (MSykes@court.co.macon.il.us), November 19, 1999.

Damon, I tried calling 1-800-448-2954 and call wouldn't go through. There was a recording stating to check the number and try again. I wonder if it is a number that is blocked out for Illinois. (This is in reference to Antec, Inc.) I called 1-800-555-1212 to get another number from the toll free operator, and the Antec, Inc. that were listed were warehouse distributors in IL and CA. Okay, do you have an address or website for Antec? Thanks. Marsha.

-- Marsha (MSykes@court.co.macon.il.us), November 19, 1999.


Is there any where you can just go purchase KI? I tried a web-site last night that had mentioned on an early thread - to no avail.

-- KI (karlacalif@aol.com), November 19, 1999.

Got mine from www.gotplenty.com. Arrived in one week. Purchased 4 bottles (100 cnt) 150 mg tabs for total of $60.00.

I highly recommend this source...

R.

-- Roland (nottelling@nowhere.com), November 19, 1999.


My husband is allergic to shellfish and I understand potassium iodide and iodate can cause dangerous reactions for him.

Does anyone know of an alternative treatment?

-- mommacarestx (nospam@thanks.net), November 19, 1999.


Another source: TACDA The American Civil Defense Association.

Their organization puts out a journal. When I ordered my KIO3 I decided to become a member (you get a discount on purchases) mainly to get the past journals that covered Y2K. I was pretty impressed with the information. For longtime Yourdonites it is probably nothing much you didn't already know, but if you are still working on DWGI relatives, having the info come from a long-established organization like TACDA may carry some clout. Here's a link to the journal articles (guess I didn't need to become a member after all. - bg-

The Year 2000 (Y2K) Challenge (Part 1)

The Y2K Challenge (Part 2) - Warmth - Kevin Briggs

Prices for KIO3 (150mg, bottle of 100): $16.95 (members), $18.83 (non- members).

-- Linda (lwmb@psln.com), November 19, 1999.


Marsha,

The number listed on Antec's website is (800) 448-2954. I don't know why it did not work for you. They say this number is good anywhere in the continental U.S. Their regular number is (502) 636-5176 and their address is:

Antec, Inc. 721 Bergman Avenue Louisville, KY 40203

Website: http://www.kyantec.com/contact.htm

-- Damon Devine (ddevine@impulse.net), November 19, 1999.



Damon, Thanks. I got through on the 800 number this time. I know I tried at least 4 times earlier this morning. Oh well, got my order in. Thanks alot. I guess I was the second order to come in today. On to taking care of my final preps...

-- Marsha (MSykes@court.co.macon.il.us), November 19, 1999.

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