Comments | the_recession: Study: Fukushima Radiaton Deaths in US so far at least 14,000*

cieldumort in the_recession

Study: Fukushima Radiaton Deaths in US so far at least 14,000*

Jan 08, 2012 00:36

Deaths in the United States caused by exposure to radiation from the Japanese Fukushima nuclear disaster puts the range between 14,000 and 18,000, according to a release published in the December 2011 edition of the peer-reviewed International Journal of Health Services ((PDF)The author's estimate of 14,000 excess U.S. deaths in the 14 weeks after ( Read more... )

japan nuclear disaster of 2011, healthcare

Comments 7

rev_mom January 8 2012, 19:58:56 UTC

ok. who exactly has died from radiation....or are we talking 20 years from now?

I have thyroid cancer, probably caused by fallout from nuclear testing in the 50's. This is all longterm stuff, and there really isn't any "blame" or culpability.

BTW, people born before the nuclear age do not have Strontium 90 in their bones.

cieldumort January 9 2012, 03:57:31 UTC

The author's of the paper claim it is almost entirely infants under one year of age.

It looks weak to me, too.

badnewswade January 9 2012, 14:51:22 UTC

Not really. They're saying a spike in cot deaths might be blamed on the fallout plume from Fukushima, as said spike coincided with the arrival of radioactive particles in the US and Canada ( ... )

cieldumort January 12 2012, 05:35:32 UTC

I agree with your criticisms of the journalists.

On the other hand, for a "peer-reviewed" study this is still weak sauce. However, if the critic's arguments were actually at all sound, I might not have opted to share the story at all but they weren't.

tenou_k January 8 2012, 21:40:45 UTC

Did you read that paper linked in the first paragraph? It's really not convincing. They're comparing the 14 weeks after the accident with the 14 weeks before the accident, measuring only deaths, not deaths from radiation poisoning. If radiation (no mention of whether it's supposed to be ingested radioactive particles or external exposure that's killed thousands of Americans) has the magical ability to cause people to die of other things, then yes, that would be concerning, but the "rise" in radiation-related disorders is so marginal, and the time frame in questions so short that it's no surprise to learn that the mortality rate in the US hasn't actually varied much in the weeks following the accident, compared to a longer-term trend.

Junk "science."

cieldumort January 9 2012, 03:55:43 UTC

I'm not the least bit convinced, either.

Just putting it out there.

(The comment has been removed)

cieldumort January 12 2012, 05:36:33 UTC

Yes.