As you can imagine, I have had no end of contacts from people shall we say ….
freaking out about the “hints” from the big name news readers on the TeeVee.
And so … I have been asked to give them advice on what to stock up on in preparation before, during and after “the Big Event”. I decided instead to write what I had to share in a post to share with a wider audience beyond my own inner circle as well. Links to sources are in gold.
Be strong and of a good courage, fear not,
nor be afraid of them:
for the Lord thy God,
he it is that doth go with thee;
he will not fail thee, nor forsake thee.
Deuteronomy 31:6, KJV
Please note that the information I am sharing is not based on personal experience or first hand knowledge. I’ve never had to deal with a nuclear blast, radioactive fallout, etc. But I do have first hand experience with the long term effects of radiation sickness, caring for my paternal grandfather who as a result of his technical expertise during his war time service suffered with life time radiation sickness. It’s not pleasant, but he did live to 78 with nutritive and medical support and followup. What finally got him was not the radiation sickness, but the metastasized cancer from being a lifetime smoker. But I digress.
Update: The preventative and restorative remedies discussed below I have had some direct experience with. I take them myself, and they were recommended by the oncology team for a young family member who was about to undergo a “lifetime dose” of pencil beam radiation. She still takes the supplements listed below, even though her radiation treatment was several years ago. I wanted to clarify that I do have some direct experience in supportive nutrition and supplements for patients exposed to therapeutic radiation but not a radioactive blast or power plant leak.
FWIW, I do not receive any income/residuals from the links to products listed below. I provide them simply to help people source the products I am referring to in the post. As always, do your own research, and there are a number of different vendors who provide similar products.
There are a number of good resources out there to help you plan for and manage exposure to toxic metals and radioactive by products, including:
Removing radioisotopes and fallout from drinking water
Dartmouth Toxic Metals Project
Radioactive Environmental Remediation (IAEA)
Preventative – Pre Exposure
While researching this post, it seems that the best preventative measure is to have as healthy an immune system as possible. We are all exposed to radiation from a wide variety of sources, including background radiation, daily. Our immune system is designed to cope with that – within limits. Everything in moderation, including excess.
Having on hand a great cancer diet cookbook like the one shown will help you find nutritious, body building foods that are preventative for not only cancer but radiation exposure and could be a great incentive to switch to a healthier lifestyle, “Big Event” or not.
Specific foods that have been shown to be protective from radiation exposure:
Spirulina and Chlorella, both nutritious blue green algae, have a wide variety of positive health effects. They are protective from radiation and help the body heal after radiation exposure. Chlorella is used in heavy metal chelation (ie: removing the toxic metals from your body).
Both can be purchased as a powder to add to smoothies and soups, or in tablet form. I prefer the tablet form and I use a 50/50 blend of both.
They also have many other really great nutritional benefits, and based on volume, are an excellent source of protein. You can do your own research to look into the wonders of these tiny power pack pills. Even without a Dr Strangelove event, these are worth adding to your daily diet.
As always, choose your supplier carefully and make sure it is a clean water source that the algae are grown in.
Fucoidan is recommended for use by cancer patients who are undergoing radiation therapy, including “extreme”, “life time doses” of therapeutic radiation. Fucoidan is a complex polysaccharide that is found in some types of brown seaweed. In addition to its other positive nutritive properties, it is high in iodine, which is protective of the thyroid gland. Brown seawood also attracts and collects toxic materials in the body, and provides bulk which is added to the intestinal tract to aid in the expulsion of toxic materials.
Modifilian is a specific trade name and product of concentrated brown seaweed extract that also contains not only fucoidan, but fucoxanthin, alginate, laminarian, iodine and 72 other trace minerals and vitamins. It was given to workers tasked with cleaning up the after effects of Chernobyl.
From the Modifilian website:
- Modifilan was first developed in the Russia the late 1960’s after radioactive fallouts occurred at nuclear labs and power plants. Russian scientists found that brown seaweed – Laminaria – had the strongest healing effect for treating radiation poisoning. It has perfect group of elements (ionic iodine, laminarin, alginates and selenium), found in one natural source
- The first time it was successfully used in big volumes was after the Chernobyl nuclear plant catastrophe in 1989. Used for detoxification and thyroid gland rehabilitation, Modifilan helped thousands of nuclear plant workers and people in the area affected by the explosion. Large group of doctors was assigned to observe the health conditions of those who consumed Modifilan for almost one year.
Marine phytoplankton
In addition to Spirulina, Chlorella, Fucoidan, broad spectrum marine phytoplankton have been shown to be protective against radiation exposure and healing from radiation exposure. For many in the naturopathic community, Oceans Alive is considered to be the most bioactive form of marine phytoplankton.
Medicinal Mushrooms
Medicinal mushrooms, such as Reishi, Chaga, Turkey Tail and Cordyceps help protect tissues from radiation induced anoxia (oxygen deprivation). All are well known as having powerful preventative and cancer curing properties and help collect toxic materials from the body to be safely disposed of through excretory functions (respiratory, urine and stool). The fiber in medicinal mushrooms, like brown seaweed, also helps add necessary and helpful bulk to the intestinal tract to aid the body in expelling toxins and toxic materials.
I had been taking a medicinal mushroom blend previously, for overall health and as part of a cancer prophylaxis protocol, and use medicinal mushrooms in cooking and for tisanes. I just recently switched to Pure Synergy’s “Immune Health” blend on the recommendation of one of my instructors. The link is for information purposes only; there are a number of vendors that sell it, so do some price comparison before you buy if you do decide to add it to your regime. Pure Synergy I think will be a great daily supplement for me personally for prophylaxis as it contains a good variety of medicinal mushrooms, fucoidan, beta 1,3 glucan and astraglus. I take all of these separately and this cuts down on the number of supplements I have to take. YMMV.
Dark Leafy Greens
High quality, pesticide free leafy greens such as mustard greens, beet tops, kale, collard greens, and alfalfa (all very high in chlorophyll) have been demonstrated to be protective against radiation damage and exposure. Consuming two or more of high quality dark leafy greens daily is a good regime to adopt for radiation exposure prevention.
Buckwheat (Fagopyrum esculentum)
The glucosides in Buckwheat can help protect the body from radiation exposure if consumed before exposure occurs. Buckwheat flour can be substituted for wheat flour in a wide variety of baked goods, such as groats, cakes, muffins, pancakes, noodles etc. Buckwheat is also used as the whole grain in stir fries, and as a side dish like barley or rice or in cold salads.
