Finland runs low on iodine tablets as Ukraine war increases nuclear fears

Stocks of iodine tablets in pharmacies across Finland have run out after health officials recommended people stock up because of increased fears of a nuclear incident due to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

On Tuesday, health officials in Finland announced that households should buy a single dose of iodine – which can protect from radiation – in an oblique acknowledgement of a potential nuclear event in Ukraine.

“An accident at a nuclear power plant could release radioactive iodine into the environment, which could build up in the thyroid gland,” the Finnish ministry of social affairs and health said.

Following the announcement, pharmacies and drug wholesalers reported they had run out of iodine tablets entirely as people rushed to purchase the medicine.

The ministry said the iodine tablet recommendation is limited to those aged between three and 40 because of the potential risks that radiation exposure poses to that age group.

In a case of a radiation emergency, sheltering indoors is the main way for people to protect themselves from hazardous radiation, the ministry also stressed.

When announcing the new recommendations, it did not mention the ongoing Russian invasion, nor did it disclose where such nuclear accidents could potentially take place.

Health officials only said they had revised guidelines on the use of iodine tablets to match the latest recommendations set by the World Health Organisation (WHO).

Elswhere, however, Petteri Tiippana, director general of the Radiation and Nuclear Safety Authority of Finland, told the Finnish newspaper Ilta-Sanomat there was a link between the update and the situation in Ukraine.

“Yes, the war in Ukraine has influenced the updating of the instructions,” he said. ”People must have up-to-date instructions should such a need arise.”

On Thursday, a senior Russian official warned that if Ukraine joined Nato it could trigger a third world war.

“Kyiv is well aware that such a step would mean a guaranteed escalation to a World War Three,” Alexander Venediktov, deputy secretary of the Security Council of the Russian Federation