19,507 Bq Radioactive Cesium from a Man in Fukushima Who's Been Eating Shiitake Mushrooms with More Than 140,000 Bq/kg of Cesium

Mind-boggling numbers, but I'm sure they will be dismissed as "no effect on health" because the man is in his 70s.

Another man was found with 11,191 becquerels. Their wives were also found with high levels of radioactive materials in their bodies.

Why? They have been eating food that they grow.

From Mainichi Shinbun (8/22/2012; link added) reporting the news that the health section at Asahi Shinbun reported in early August:

内部被ばく：自家栽培の野菜食べ　福島の男性２人

Two men in Fukushima with internal radiation exposure from eating home-grown vegetables

市場に流通しない自家栽培の野菜を食べた福島県の７０代男性２人が、比較的高い１万ベクレル超の放射性物質を取り込む内部被ばくをしていたことが、東京大医科学研究所の調査で分かった。うち１人は約２万ベクレルに達したが、これによる被ばく線量は年０．８５ミリシーベルトで、国が設けた食品からの被ばく限度（年１ミリシーベルト）は下回った。調べた坪倉正治医師は「健康被害が出るレベルではないが、自家栽培の野菜などを食べる場合は検査してほしい」と話す。

A survey by the Tokyo University Institute of Medical Science has revealed that two men in their 70s in Fukushima Prefecture who have been eating home-grown vegetables that are not sold to the market have internal radiation exposure with relatively high amount of radioactive materials, exceeding 10,000 becquerels. One of them has about 20,000 becquerels, which would translate to 0.85 millisievert [internal] exposure in one year. It is still lower than the internal radiation exposure limit from food (1 millisievert/year) set by the national government. Dr. Masaharu Tsubokura, who conducted the survey, says, "It may not be the level that would affect health, but I would like people to test the food they grow before eating them."

２人の男性は、同県川俣町と二本松市在住。今年７〜８月、内部被ばく量を測定する装置「ホールボディーカウンター」を使い、体内の放射性セシウム（１３４と１３７）の量を調べた。その結果、川俣町の男性からは１万９５０７ベクレル、その妻からは７７２４ベクレルが検出された。二本松市の男性の内部被ばく量は１万１１９１ベクレル、妻は６７７１ベクレルだった。いずれも東京電力福島第１原発事故で放出された放射性セシウムを食品から取り込んだとみられる。

One of the two men lives in Kawamata-machi, and the other lives in Nihonmatsu City. They were tested for internal radiation exposure by using the Whole Body Counter to measure radioactive cesium (cesium-134 and -137) in their bodies in July and August this year. The man in Kawamata-machi was found with 19,507 becquerels, and his wife was found with 7,724 becquerels. The man in Nihonmatsu City was found with 11,191 becquerels, and his wife 6,771 becquerels. For all of them, it is assumed that they have ingested radioactive cesium released by the Fukushima I Nuclear Power Plant accident through food.

川俣町の夫婦は、同県浪江町の原木で自家用に栽培したシイタケや自宅近くで採ったタケノコ、干し柿などを毎日食べており、シイタケからは１４万ベクレルを超す放射性物質が検出された。二本松市の夫婦は、この夫婦からもらった野菜を食べていたという。

The husband and wife in Kawamata-machi have been eating shiitake mushrooms they grow on the logs from Namie-machi [in Fukushima Prefecture], bamboo shoots harvested near their home, and dried persimmons. From the mushrooms, over 140,000 becquerels/kg of radioactive materials [cesium] was found. The couple in Nihonmatsu City has been eating the vegetables given by the couple in Kawamata-machi.

Shiitake logs from Namie-machi... It seems no one bothered to tell them that Namie-machi is probably more heavily contaminated than some of the towns closer to the Fukushima plant. Being in their 70s, their news sources are likely to be the traditional media such as newspapers and TV.

Kawamata-machi is located just west of Iitate-mura, another heavily contaminated location in Fukushima.

Dr. Tsubokura says in the original Asahi article that these levels of internal radiation exposure are seen in Belarus.

However, one of the strange things I've noticed since April 1 this year when the new safety standard of 100 Bq/kg of radioactive cesium was put in place is that people in general don't care much about food contamination any more. It was a big deal, literally up until March 31, the last day under the provisional 500 Bq/kg safety level. If a food item was found with double-digit cesium per kilogram, people were worried.

But now, with the safety limit of 100 Bq/kg and the detection limit of 20 bq/kg using NaI scintillation survey meters (which I think is too high for comfort), less and less people care if a food item is found with, say 60, 70 becquerels/kg of radioactive cesium. It doesn't make a headline news any more (though it is duly reported in the media).

Instead, they worry about a nuclear power plant in Fukui Prefecture, boy-wonder mayor of Osaka, Friday "single issue" protests at the Prime Minister's Official Residence in Tokyo.

They are good ways to not have to deal with the issues at hand, which remain, in my personal opinion, radioactive materials from the nuclear accident in the environment and how to deal with them.

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#Radiation in Japan: 60 Becquerels/Kg Cesium from Eggs in Fukushima (Video-clip added)

From TV Asahi's "Hodo Station" on July 26, in the segment that discusses the lifetime limit of 100 millisieverts radiation.

A chicken farmer in Kawamata-machi in Fukushima Prefecture has brought his eggs to a volunteer testing station in Fukushima City. After 20 minutes of testing, 60 becquerels/kg of radioactive cesium is detected from the eggs.

Disappointed, the farmer says, "I don't know what to say to my customers. It's much lower than the provisional safety limit in Japan, but if I compare the number to the safety limit in Ukraine it is extraordinary..."

The reporter asks the farmer, "What is the safety limit in Ukraine?"

6 becquerels/kg, he tells the reporter.

The man who runs the station says, "For these farmers, the provisional safety limit in Japan is just too loose."

Kawamata-machi is 47 kilometers northwest of Fukushima I Nuke Plant.

The Japanese government's mishandling and concealing the radioactive fallout information has resulted in radioactive water, vegetables, fish, mushroom, beef, hay, pork, manure, compost, and now eggs. And the farmers like this chicken farmer who clearly wants to sell only "safe" eggs to his customers are at a loss. To the chicken farmer, 60 becquerels/kg was just too high to sell his eggs in good conscience.

20110726　食品安全基準　生涯で１００ｍＳｖ以上は‥ by PMG5

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CNN Has the Most Details in "Radioactive Iodine, Cesium Found in Urine Samples of 15 Fukushima Residents" News

For reference, the information contained in the Kyodo News Japanese reporting the same news (final version) is highlighted in blue (not in the exact words but content).

From CNN (6/27/2011):

(CNN) -- Japanese researchers have found radiation in all 15 people tested last month from the area near the crippled Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant.

Cesium was found in the participants, ranging from 4 to 77 years old, through two rounds of testing conducted by Nanao Kamada at the Research Institute for Radiation Biology and Medicine of Hiroshima University.

Kamada insisted that the cesium numbers are minute and do not represent a health threat.

The people tested lived in the towns of Iitate and Kawamata, located about 25 miles (40 kilometers) from the nuclear plant.

The participants were also tested for radioactive iodine, which was found in the urine of six Fukushima prefecture residents.

The urine samples from a 77-year-old man in the first round of tests indicated radioactivity as high as 3.2 millisieverts. However, no iodine was found from the urine of the same man in the second round of tests, ruling out the possibility of air contamination.

"The cause might be that they ate contaminated vegetables and mushrooms before the restrictions, not by inhaling contaminated air," Kamada said, referring to a large scale restriction on Fukushima produce following the incident at the plants on March 11.

The data indicated that accumulated external exposure was between 4.9 and 13.5 millisieverts for the two months after the accident -- a number which could exceed the government limit of 20 millisieverts per year if they continue living in the area.

"From the perspective of protecting human health from radiation, it is clear that they unfortunately cannot continue to live in their homes," Kamada said. About 7,500 people were evacuated from the communities by the end of May, although some folks continue to live in Iitate.

The first test was conducted May 5, while the second was conducted at the end of the month. The results were announced to the residents June 19.

Kyodo added extra (in red, below) which is not in CNN, and which, it turns out, the doctor never said:

"If they do not eat contaminated vegetables from now on, there is no need to worry. But they cannot continue to live in their homes if the Fukushima I Nuke Plant accident doesn't wind down," Kamada said, indicating agreement with the national government's policy that designated the area as "planned evacuation zone".

Kyodo News never mentioned radioactive iodine, never mentioned external exposure. It did mention the age of the subjects (4 to 77), radiation of about 3 millisieverts and the dates of the tests in the earlier version of the news, but deleted the information in the final version. In the earlier version, there was no mention of Professor Kamada agreeing with the national government policy or commenting on the Fukushima plant.

Of course, CNN in turn could be making up the stories...

(h/t doitsujin for CNN link)

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