ROBERT J.R. GRAHAM: Natural Detox for Radiation

How to Rid Yourself of Radiation: An All-Natural Detox Plan

by Doug DiPasquale Mar 21st 2011 7:00AM

Since the tragic earthquake and tsunami in Japan on March 11, the world has been watching closely to see if the nuclear power plants that were badly damaged by the quake are going to meltdown. As usual in disaster situations, hysteria is flowing full-bore. A map, supposedly put out by Australian Radiation Services showing the west coast of Canada and the U.S. getting massive doses of radiation (in the event of a meltdown) has been proven to be a hoax.

Nonetheless, people are freaking out about possible health problems stemming from the radioactive material (despite official assurances everything will be fine) spewing from the reactors. In some cases, people are even buying up iodine pills. Online bids for single packets of potassium iodide pills (which counteract the thyroid gland’s ability to absorb highly carcinogenic radioactive iodine) are reportedly exceeding $500.

The thing is, iodine pills are neither radiation antidotes nor are they appropriate for everyone to use (particularly pregnant women).

So rather than grabbing a bottle of iodine and swabbing your throat (where the thyroid gland is located) — as some people have reportedly been doing — I thought I’d put together a list of known substances that work to detoxify the body after radiation exposure.

GreenMedInfo.com, a fantastic database of scientific studies on natural substances, has a page set up for Radiation Disaster Associated Toxicity. Their page has 159 articles for 81 different supplements and natural substances that show effectiveness against radiation in some capacity. Yes, potassium iodide is listed as the top choice, but curcumin, a phytonutrient found in turmeric, is a close second (it’s followed by calendula, fibre and homeopathic remedies like traumeel and seaweeds).

Getting heavy metals out of the body by using chelating agents is also an important step. These agents include seaweeds and, in particular, algaes, including spirulina and chlorella. A sulfur compound known as DMSA is another good chelating agent — it’s being used extensively in the autism community in cleansing heavy metal therapy (to great results).

Another important step is loading up on antioxidants to mitigate the effects of radiation. Radiation produces free-radicals, which damage the cells that make up the tissues of organs, glands, muscles and bones (damaged cells can mutate, creating cancers such as leukemia, anemia, birth defects and other diseases).

Sulfur compounds found in health food stores, including MSM and DMSO, are important for detoxification because of their powerful antioxidant content. Vegetables from the brassica family, including cabbage, broccoli, kale and mustard greens, will help against radiation damage because they contain sulfur as well as high levels of beta-carotene and other carotenoid phytonutrients (which act as antioxidants).

Byron Richards recommends an antioxidant cocktail including selenium, vitamin C, N-acetyl cysteine, alpha lipoic acid, alpha-tocopherol succinate and co-enzyme Q10 started within 24 hours of exposure. In particular, he recommends tocotrienols (a unique form of vitamin E, which protects against whole body radiation exposure), berries and lipoic acid, which help to maintain body antioxidant levels in the brain, liver, spleen, kidney and testes.

At this point, it’s premature to start mega-dosing supplements to protect from radiation exposure that may not materialize. But it doesn’t hurt to have some of this stuff on hand in the event of a worst case scenario. And, since most of these supplements are appropriate for any detox protocol, you won’t be wasting anything if a best case scenario comes to pass.

The Healthy Foodie is Doug DiPasquale, Holistic Nutritionist and trained chef, living in Toronto. You can email him with questions at dougthehealthyfoodie@gmail.com.

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