LIKE WE SAID: U.S. Drug Stores Report Sudden Increase in Potassium Iodide Sales

READ: Sudden Increase in Potassium Iodide Sales

Purchase of potassium iodide doesn't require a prescription.  Potassium iodide is a salt that stops the body from taking in radioactive iodine that can be emitted during a nuclear emergency.  It fills up the thyroid gland, preventing it from collecting the radioactive material and reducing the risk of cancer, among other things.  The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission says evacuation is the best protection, since it protects the entire body, but taking the medicine is helpful if that isn't possible.  The NRC has asked states with residents living within a 10-mile radius of a nuclear-power plant to consider potassium iodide, but hasn't ordered states to make the purchases.