Pharmacies across Europe have run out of iodine tablets as people panic-buy in anticipation of a potential nuclear conflict.
The development comes as fears grow that the conflict in Ukraine could escalate to a hot war between nuclear-armed Russia and NATO.
Russian President Vladimir Putin has said that the heavy Western sanctions leveled against his country are “akin to a declaration of war” amid his ongoing invasion of Ukraine.#gripthttps://t.co/MAj8LLUQU4
— gript (@griptmedia) March 5, 2022
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said last week that a third world war would be “nuclear and destructive,” and Russia’s nuclear forces have been on high alert since early in the conflict.
It is believed that iodine tablets can protect against thyroid cancer, which can be caused by radiation, such as after an atomic blast.
In 2002, not long after the 9/11 attacks, the Irish Department of Health distributed iodine tablets to each household in the state as part of the government’s National Emergency Plan for Nuclear Accidents. The tablets were believed to offer a degree of protection against radioactive iodine, and one tablet was to be taken before any nuclear fallout reached Ireland.
The plan said that, in the event of a nuclear fallout near the island, people should take additional counter measures, including staying indoors and avoiding foods potentially contaminated with radiation.
Pharmacies in France, Poland, Belgium, the Netherlands, Denmark, the Czech Republic, Sweden, Bulgaria, Finland, Croatia and more have reported significant demand for the tablets.
However, health authorities are urging citizens not to take the tablets unless advised to do so by medical experts.
According to The Express, one Belgian pharmacist said: “If we see a nuclear cloud arriving, we take it.
“But, in the event of a nuclear bomb though, I think we’ll have other worries rather than swallowing our little iodine tablet.”
The chair of the Bulgarian Pharmacies Union said that Bulgarian dispensaries had sold as much iodine in 6 days as they would normally sell in a year.
“Some pharmacies are already out of stock. We have ordered new quantities but I am afraid they will not last very long,” he said.